


Roots and Rocks

by LewdPointyNoses



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Sword & Shield | Pokemon Sword & Shield Versions
Genre: Adorable, Big Cock, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Support, Family Drama, Fluff and Smut, French Kissing, Friends to Lovers, Happy Ending, Light Angst, M/M, Porn with Feelings, Service Top, Sexual Fantasy, Slow Burn, Slow Romance, Warm and Fuzzy Feelings, Wholesome, bara, bi Gordie, chubby x buff bfs, colleagues to friends to lovers, fluffy like a wooloo, gay Milo, gei komi, love thy rareships, supportive bf, there will be NSFW but a lot of character interaction comes first
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-30
Updated: 2021-01-25
Packaged: 2021-03-01 02:41:18
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 34,844
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23267884
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LewdPointyNoses/pseuds/LewdPointyNoses
Summary: Gordie was frustrated.He had lost in the first round of the Galar Champion Cup. Angrily, he sat down in the gym lockers and buried his face in his hands.Little did he know, that Milo was around to talk and cheer him up.This was the beginning of something new.[Friends to Lovers | Slow Burn | Warm & Fluff with some Angst-Emotional Hurt/Comfort]
Relationships: Dande | Leon/Kibana | Raihan (background), Makuwa | Gordie/Yarrow | Milo, Milo/Gordie, Stonegardenshipping, mkyr
Comments: 72
Kudos: 173





	1. Lost Battle, New Beginning

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fic for the Pokemon fandom, I normally inhabit far smaller niche fandoms. Please enjoy!

“Hah…” with a listless sigh, Gordie sat down on the bench in the locker room.

From outside, he could still hear the crowd chant and roar, dampened by the glass doors that lead to the field.

The Champion Cup was still in full swing – an excited audience, thrilling Pokémon battles, and larger-than-life trainers, fighting with their beloved partners by their side. An event which everyone in the region was watching right now, from families, to retired grandparents, to young children just old enough to receive their first Pokémon with bright eyes and smiling faces: Simply everyone was glued to their screens in this very moment.

And in front of this colossal, overbearing audience… Gordie had lost.

His first match-up in the Champion Cup had been against Nessa, and, well, just by pure type disadvantage alone, he had lost. He had trained so much beforehand, prepared all his held items and had given his Pokémon new TM moves, had made curry with his team in his personal training camp in the mountains, had made sure that his own gym outfit had been spotless, and yet, it had been all in vain. He had never won the Champion Cup in the past, not now and it looked like this losing streak would continue.

Gordie buried his face into his hands, feeling the trainer’s glove against his cheek.

This day had just been awful, and now it had gotten worse.

The chanting audience, the one he normally loved so much, just sounded like mocking to him. People tend to forget that an audience… is a _beast_.

If it’s on your side, you feel empowered and supported, looked at and listened to, as if you are on top of the world. However, if the audience is against you, it’s terrifying, knowing that all these voices shouting at you in this witches’ cauldron are wishing to see you stumble and fail.

Or in the worst case, the current case, that they are not ‘for’ or ‘against’ you - but that they are ‘ _not’_ for you.

These stadium chants were _not_ for him, and for the rest of this tournament, he was no one anymore. Cast aside as the rubbish, the residue of the first round. Forgotten. Maybe his fans would be sad, but then they would quickly chant for someone else, to not ruin their own experience. Fans need someone to support, no matter who. It’s their identity. Their purpose that fills their free time on a weekend.

In this very moment, the moment he was cast out of the tournament, he was… alone. Unremembered. Unknown.

No one would care about him for the next few hours.

Maybe the vultures of the press would. The bloggers and content creators of the web, explaining to the audience in replays and video essays how much his skills had deteriorated since last time. ‘And here you can see him using a Stealth Rock, when he should have opted for direct offensive of an immediate Rock Tomb.’ And all of that nonsense which would for last weeks.

He could already see the headlines and trending videos, but most of all, the stern voice of his own moth-

Gordie audibly sneered.

“Ngeh!” and threw his hands in frustration, as if he was throwing away a whole garbage bin of intrusive thoughts.

Not the kind of concern he needed right now.

“I don’t need any more of that…” he whispered to himself and knitted his brows.

“ _Need more of what?_ ” he heard a sudden friendly voice coming from around the corner of the locker room.

Gordie looked up and saw… the warm face of Milo peeking out behind a locker.

“Oh, Milo…” Gordie noticed, but quickly turned back to his worrying thoughts, looking back at the floor, “It’s… It’s nothing, honestly.”

_That was a lie, but he didn’t feel like opening up right now._

“Well then!” smiled Milo, “If it’s nothing, then everything is fine!” and adjusted his sun hat slightly.

Gordie looked at Milo standing there. He was already out of his gym leader outfit, back in his casual clothes: beige Bermuda shorts, sandals, a (surprisingly tight around his chest) mint polo shirt, and a dark blue summer jacket, all topped off with a poofy white scarf. He had never thought of Milo as someone who made an effort in fashion, but was also quite astonished how he could pull off a sun hat with a scarf.

Next to Milo stood something that looked like a beach bag, and in it were, of course, his gym leader clothes.

“… Did you lose in the first round too?” concluded Gordie seeing the bag.

“Oh! Yeah… Yeah, I did…” smiled Milo a bit coyly, and scratched his neck. The straw hat moved with him in quite a funny manner. Milo continued: “I was paired up against Kabu in the first fight, and well, not even my beloved Appletun stood a chance. I thought I could maybe stand a chance with the additional dragon typing, but I had forgotten about his Salazzle which knows Dragon Pulse. … And why does his Arcanine even know Fairy type attacks, I didn’t expect a ‘Play Rough’ out of nowhere!”

Milo sounded more confused than angry, which, in return, confused Gordie.

“In any case…” smiled Milo again, tilting his head playfully, and asked: “How are you doing?”

Gordie was just flabbergasted at this point.

Milo had lost in the first round… like him. Against a gym leader with massive type advantage… like him. And yet, he was so calm - and cheerful even. Was he _not_ angry and frustrated… like him? How could he behave like that in such a disheartening situation?

“I… I’m doing fine.” said Gordie, lying through his teeth, “I just lost the battle over there against Nessa, a-and… _I… I j-just_ …”

Gordie’s voice broke. He couldn’t do it.

“… Honestly, I’m not well.” sighed Gordie finally, and sunk together on the bench again, his elbows resting on his knees and his head lowering. His glasses slipped to the tip of his nose; he didn’t even want to push them back up again.

“Hey…” he heard the worried voice of Milo, and in the corner of his eye, he saw that Milo had rushed closer and sat down smoothly next to him without making a noise. “I’m listening. What’s up?” Milo asked softly, a slight worried tone seeping into his voice.

Gordie still didn’t want to fully open up. They had only been something like work colleagues so far, seen each other at events or battle leagues, exchanged a few niceties and bits of small talk, but never had shared anything in-depth about their worries or private lives. And yet, he wanted to share and speak what was on his mind, to let everything go of what was worrying him…

But alas, Gordie’s heart had turned into a rock for now, to not hurt himself further.

He wasn’t the type of person who could swallow his emotions down, not the hot, burning, immediate reactions. Normally after he lost, he would just lock himself in and not speak to interviewers or reporters. Like a burning drive to run away and hide until it was over. The long, cold and lingering worries, those he could bury somewhere in his deepest core without letting them show. But the things that were weighing on his mind would smother him. A mismatched mess of hot and cold hardness he couldn’t crack in his hardened heart pulsating underneath.

_Come on, try to open up._

_A little._

_Just speak._

Gordie’s lips parted to say something…

“It’s … I’m…”

Milo listened attentively and looked at him.

Gordie could feel the warm presence of Milo sitting next to him, waiting.

“I…”

Nervously, Gordie ran his hand through his hair again.

And finally, he managed to whisper:

“ _I find it hard to deal with… losing… in front of such a big audience. It’s… so much…”_

There. He said it. It was just one of his worries, but one he could share for now. It was true, and it was weighing on his mind right now.

Milo on the other hand, didn’t answer directly, but took his sun hat off and gently put it next to him on the bench.

In this moment, Gordie noticed that he had never seen Milo without his hat.

“I feel you.” Milo sighed. “It’s not easy, especially with that big live audience around you. Your fans, the press, the social media… Everyone.”

A small silence followed, the crowd outside was chanting, the electronic stadium music thumping, muffled through the glass door leading to the field.

Milo continued, a gentle tone to his voice, as they sat next to each other in this soft audible mayhem that engulfed them:

“But… Maybe it’s just my own way of looking at things, but losing is not the end. In my case, it’s always the beginning.”

Gordie looked up and their eyes met.

“Huh?” Gordie asked, rising one eyebrow, “How is losing always the beginning?”

Milo laughed: “Haha, I think most people don’t realise it or properly think about it, but… I’m the first gym leader! I’m everyone’s first! Everyone who wants to do the Galar League! And therefore, I lose pretty often!”

The cogs were turning in Gordie’s head, and then the answer hit him like an onstorming Rhyhorn. He lifted his finger and remarked, slowly:

“… You… You have tons of trainers who come to you, and because you have your ‘easy’ team for them, many pass. And getting your first gym badge means… defeating you. You lose.” said Gordie, with rising realisation.

“Exactly.” smiled Milo wider, “My team for the beginners is just my Gossifleur and Eldegoss.”

Godie was astonished.

Milo looked away for a second, up at the ceiling, a faraway look of basking in memories. After a beat, he spoke, the thoughts of his mind flowing to his mouth:

“I lose on a regular basis, practically every day, mind you. But in return, I get to see the first steps of rising young trainers. Sometimes even older trainers who want to do something new in their life. I am the first hurdle they have to overcome, and when they do, they feel like they are on top of the world. Their first gym… Their first time seeing and experiencing the big, chanting audience… The first ‘official’ fight in their lives. I often have young ones who get stage fright the first time, so I walk with them to the field and calm them down a little. It’s a fulfilling position to be the first gym leader. I can make them feel empowered and validated, and make sure that their first impression of this professional gym battle world is a positive one.”

Milo looked back at Gordie, and for just a second, Gordie could see the fire in Milo’s friendly eyes.

“To see them accept their first badge with bright eyes and a jolly smile as they shake my hand erratically, still fuelled with adrenaline, makes me really happy. We were all beginners, and I can make sure they all have a great start! And when I see that, my own worries about losing are just blown away!”

The biggest grin was on Milo’s face. Reaching from ear to ear with the purest joy radiating from his heart.

“… I never thought about that.” answered Gordie. Milo was the first gym leader of the Galar region, he was the sixth. Of course they had different views on losing in battle: Their day-to-day battles and lives were completely different.

Milo nodded and said: “I have never been to your gym, but I can imagine that your battles are far harder than mine. You have the tough bunch, the ones who want to rise to the top, who already made it this far, and who want to take you down no matter what.”

To hear his own situation described so clearly stung in Gordie’s heart, but in a good way. It made sense. He had far less contestants than Milo, but they all were determined und eager to win. Of course they would be happy to win the badge, but it didn’t have that ‘wholesome’ feeling that Milo described. The bright eyes of the trainers who once had happily accepted the Grass Badge, had now hardened to take on the Rock Badge.

As that realisation sunk in, Gordie’s heart began to ache anew. He felt himself tearing up, but he didn’t want to cry. Not here, not in front of Milo.

With a trembling voice, Gordie whispered:

“ _So… Am I just an obstacle?_ ”

Behind the slipped off blue sunglasses, his sad eyes met Milo’s.

Milo immediately gasped and came forward to pat Gordie’s shoulder. A small gesture, but one that felt good. “Hey…! No, you are not an obstacle! You are a gym leader, people look up to you! You have many fans and supporters! You shape these trainers and are an amazing guardian on their way in life!”

_His way with words was healing, thought Gordie, choking as he held back his tears. Simple, warm, straight to the point._

_Milo’s big hand gently patted Gordie’s shoulder._

“Hey… Keep your head up, you’re an amazing trainer.” whispered Milo.

The crowd outside erupted into a gigantic cheer. The victory music began to engulf the stadium, signalling that this battle round was over.

Other gym leaders would walk in any minute.

“T-Thanks.” said Gordie, he wanted to say more, that Milo had really helped him here and that he really appreciated that little talk, but any more words would open the floodgates of his eyes.

A small silence followed.

“You know what…?” smiled Milo kindly, “Come visit me in Turffield next week. We can talk some more, and I can show you my gym. We have never seen each other’s places.”

Milo got up and picked up his sun hat from the bench, ready to go. Gordie looked up, wanting to get up as well to say goodbye, this had been a bit sudden, but Milo only smiled back at him and said: “I think a little bit of downtime will do us well. … Here, take this.”

With an elegant swing, Milo had taken off his poofy white scarf and handed it to Gordie. “I find having a little comfort item is always good when you feel distressed. Something to hold on to or to caress to soothe your mind.” Gordie was confused at this genuine heartfelt move, but slowly reached out. As his fingertips touched the fabric, he gasped: “ _Hah…_ ”

“Hm-mh!” chuckled Milo in an affirmative tone, “Yeah, it’s made from finest Wooloo wool, from my own sheep farm. Incredibly soft and just so nice and comforting to touch. … And knowing you live in Circhester up North, you could need it for your travel back. Take it, you can have it!”

In any other case, with anyone else, Gordie would have just refused this gift, not wanting to be indebted, he had his own scarf with him in his locker anyway, he didn’t need a second one, but---

“Thank you.” Gordie shyly smiled and took the scarf in his gloved hand.

“You’re welcome!” grinned Milo back and adjusted his sunhat with a cheeky move. “I’ll be off, I’ll take the train back to Turffield now, it departs soon. Time for me to go! See you next week!”

Milo took up his beach bag with his clothes, and waved goodbye as he walked to the door leading outside.

“See you!”

“… See you!” answered Gordie with a bit of a delay. The door closed behind Milo, and Gordie was alone again.

Silence.

He felt the scarf between his fingers. It was incredibly soft, but somehow felt light, not too heavy, like something that could keep you warm easily without making you sweat.

“ _Hm…_ ” wondered Geordie.

_Gentle, light thoughts went through his mind, some that brushed away the worries of earlier._

_A little trip to visit a colleague should be nice, a break from his busy gym life to take a breather._

_Share some memories, share some anecdotes, talk, listen… have a good time._

He swung the scarf around his own neck and immediately noticed – it was incredibly comfy. Soothing even. Gently embracing his neck and shoulders with a kind warmth.

Gordie smiled.

However, this serene moment was interrupted by the glass door to the field flying open, and Bea came storming in, quickly followed by Nessa with a brisk walk.

“He…” Gordie didn’t even have time to say Hello, because Bea immediately punched her locker, which flew wide open with a metal **_CLANK_**. She grumbled and took out her backpack. Nessa rushed to her side and tried to urgently talk to her.

Gordie didn’t listen anymore, he gently caressed the scarf. How soft it was against his skin.

_(Next to him unfolded a discussion with Nessa arguing about the passion of battles and how you should not use it for property damage, which was promptly retorted with the argument that Bea had lost her locker key and that was the only logical solution to this problem.)_

It was time for him to go as well. Gordie picked up his backpack from his locker and walked to the door.

_(Nessa had started arguing that Bea could have just picked up a duplicate key from the reception, to which Bea answered that this was indeed ‘not quite as fun’. This whole discourse derailed into a cheeky discussion of Pokemon types and why Fighting types are totally better than Water types.)_

“See you all…” Gordie waved goodbye.

~ ~ ~

As Gordie walked out of the Wyndon Stadium, he was greeted with a beautiful dusk. The thin clouds on the horizon covered the setting orange sun, basking everything in a soothing light. Behind him, he could still hear the crowds and the music, the semi-finals had probably begun already.

The gentle heat emitting from the stone ground felt nice after the air-conditioned halls of the reception. In front of him stood a small group of fans and journalists, however, the journalists seemed to pay no attention to him, they were glued to their smartphones, waiting for the battles to end and then rush to the winner and loser of the finale to interview them.

A few fans noticed him and began running towards him with drawn smartphones and autograph cards, and Gordie felt chuffed. Normally he would just call a Corviknight cab and immediately fly home after a loss, but today, he felt like spending some time with fans. His mood had improved infinitely after his talk with Milo.

How wonderful.

He walked towards his fans and spoke: “Heyyy everyone! Who wants an autograph?”

_And in this serene evening sun, as Gordie signed cards and took photos with fans, he felt that his heart had been warmed by a new, unknown feeling. A feeling that made his steps easier and his mind lighter, as soft as the scarf around his neck, laughing and joking with fans on this fine day._

**TO BE CONTINUED**


	2. The First Arrival

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The following week, Gordie arrived in Turffield, to follow Milo's invitation. How would this visit turn out on this sunny day?

A WEEK LATER

The Corviknight cab soared over the lush green fields of South-West Galar, the wind blowing in Gordie’s hair as he looked out the cab window. The sun shined brightly over the many hills and valleys, and spotted shadows danced under bushes and trees.

Gordie was on his way to visit Milo in Turffield. After his invitation last week at the Champion’s Cup, they had written a few messages back and forth, and settled on this day. At first, Gordie had been a bit anxious to simply ask for Milo’s number at the Gym Leader Association, but Milo had been faster than him, having asked for his number first and writing him immediately the next day. “Hm-hm…!” chuckled Gordie to himself, they had both forgotten to ask the other one for their mobile phone number; that amused him somehow.

The city of Hammerlocke lay already behind him, he would soon reach Turffield. It was soothing to travel this way, especially in such a nice late Spring weather. Fruit trees were in full bloom, and nature recovered from a cold winter – life returned.

Gordie looked inside the cab. Just his own backpack, a brochure, and a map of Galar, other than that, he was alone. The cab rider sat outside steering the big Corviknight, a massive steel raven that could carry heavy loads with ease. The big wingflaps and whooshing wind added to the travelling experience: It felt homely, comforting, and quite private. No small talk, no music, nobody else – just Gordie on his way to visit Milo, taking in the beautiful landscape scenery around him.

They had just passed the river of Route 5, when Gordie heard a faraway commotion. It sounded like a human voice and Pokémon noises. He leaned out the window a bit more, his sunglasses shielding his eyes from the wind. The landscape below him looked like pasture hills, with a few low stone walls and wooden gates, a lot of space for a lot of Pokémon, with forests around them.

And then saw… something really far away, running over the hills. He squinted. Two, maybe three different figures, all different sizes.

Hm. They felt oddly familiar, even if he could not make them out.

_Interesting._

“Cab driver!” Gordie yelled out the window upwards to the driver, “You can let me out here, I’ll walk the last few miles!” The cab driver looked down over his shoulder and gave a big smile and thumbs up. “Right you are, Sir!”

And with a loud jolly “CORVIIIII!” screech, the cab began to gently descent towards one of the rural roads to land.

Gordie grabbed his backpack and looked at his phone again. No new messages, no phone calls, everything seemed to be alright for today. He was a bit in advance anyways, so it should be fine to have a nice walk in the sunshine and check out what was happening around Turffield.

~ ~ ~

The big Corviknight flapped its large wings a few times, and the cab landed with small rumble on the stone road. Gordie got out, paid the cab driver, and waved them goodbye.

After the cab had taken off and was disappearing into the thin clouds above, Gordie turned around and shouldered his backpack anew.

He felt confident, finally to be able to go on his own adventures again, far away from this whole Gym Leader business.

Like back in the old days, when he has once wandered the Galar region as well.

Gordie smiled.

He pushed up his sunglasses again, and began to walk towards Turffield, along the cobblestone road.

How idyllic it was here, he wondered, the landscape looking even more vast and beautiful from the ground level. He could smell the wild flowers and fresh grass, feel the sun-warmed stones beneath his sandals, and sense the sun from above warming his skin.

Milo had talked about his Wooloo farm before, and Gordie had even seen it in a news segment on the TV before, it was probably around here somewhere. Apparently, Milo also had a greenhouse for rare flowers and exotic berries, that sounded interesting as well.

Letting his gaze wander, Gordie was chuffed about his decision to walk. The region around Turffield was so different than Circhester, a beautiful warm place. Inviting in every sense of the word. The wide open spaces and faraway forests opened one’s eyes and heart, and one could soak in the sunshine and smells of nature. His own hometown Circhester was beautiful too: the snow was serene, and the surrounding valleys and mountains felt snug, but it was a region that made you go inside more, yearning a warm fireplace and a hot cup of cocoa after a long walk through icy paths.

Suddenly, Gordie was taken out of his thoughts by a loud yell. “HEEEEEEYYY!!!” He jolted upward and looked straight ahead to where the voice came from. It seemed familiar; it was…

“Milo??” gasped Gordie, but he didn’t have much time to react as he immediately noticed what or rather _who_ was storming towards him:

It was a small Wooloo, running at maximum speed, the little braids bouncing with every dashing step – behind that Wooloo: a dashing Yamper, panting heavily while running, barking excessively “ _YAMP! YAMP! YAMP!_ ” – and behind that Yamper: Milo, equally sprinting at full speed, gesticulating with his arms widely, and yelling, out of breath: “GORDIE!!! CATCH THAT WOOLOO!!!”

This trio of mayhem was hurtling at Gordie at a mind-staggering speed along the cobblestone road. _This was the trio he had seen from the Corviknight cab, it dawned on him immediately_. Gordie had to react immediately, he flung his backpack away, took a stance, stretched out his arms like a goalie and just before the Wooloo could jump to dodge him-

BLAM!

“OW!”

He had caught the Wooloo in his arms, the struggling fluffball of speed now held securely in his hands, but the impact had been so hefty, he had fallen over and landed on his back.

There he lay, wheezing with sudden adrenaline and slight backpain from the impact, his sunglasses partly knocked off, but… he couldn’t help but smile at this incredible welcome.

Milo’s Yamper was overjoyed, running circles around Gordie on the ground, yapping “ _Yamp! Yamp-Yamper!!_ ” in the jolliest tone, tongue hanging out the edge of its snout.

And finally, Milo had arrived next to Gordie, panting and brushing the sweat off his forehead with his elbow.

“Hah… Hah… Thank you… Gordie…” Milo rested his hands on his thighs for a second to catch his breath, then stood upright and adjusted his sunhat he had misplaced while running.

“Phew… Welcome to Turffield, I think! Haha!” laughed Milo a bit shyly, and held out his hand to help Gordie up. Gordie squinted against the sun for a second, but then secured the now tired Wooloo under his one arm and held out his other hand to Milo to get up. “Heh… Thank you for the warm welcome!”

Their hands touched, and they held each other for a second, then Milo pulled up Gordie to help him back on his feet. “Ngah…!” groaned Milo with exhaustion, still panting from his sprint. They both looked like a mess, Milo covered sweat, Gordie’s back covered in dirt.

Gordie looked at Milo and asked, “… I guess this is your Wooloo? I heard that you have a farm!” The now fully spent small Wooloo began to fall asleep under Gordie’s arm, yawning a tiny “ _Woo…_ ”

Milo nodded: “Yeah…! It’s one of my Wooloos, from my farm, a young one, as you can see! Hatched only a few days ago!” Gordie was surprised to hear that, his eyebrows bolting up a little, and he remarked: “I never knew they were so energetic!”

“Haha!” Milo laughed in return, “They are little rascals when they’re young, they need a bit of time to learn the rules of the field and the herd! … You can give him back to me!”

With a careful move, Gordie gently handed Milo the sleeping Wooloo, who took it and cradled it in his arms. The Yamper next to them seemed very excited, waggling its tail. Milo explained: “Oh yeah, and that’s my Yamper, he normally guards my sheep, but… he still needs to learn a lot too!” Gordie looked down at that overexcited dog, and that bright smile was simply irresistible. What this Yamper lacked in professionalism, it had in pure joy.

“Wanna go back to Turffield? It’s not too far from here!” asked Milo, the sunshine illuminating his sweaty, yet satisfied face. He was still blushing from all that running, which Gordie found… charming somehow.

Genuine.

Gordie pushed his askew blue sunglasses back onto his nose. “Y-Yeah, sure!”

He grabbed his backpack, they gave each other a small nod of understanding, and they began to walk the stone road next to each other through the lush fields and hills.

~ ~ ~

As they were strolling down the path, basking in the sun as the breeze gently caressed them, Gordie asked: “How do you take care of your Wooloos? I rarely see Pokémon on farms.” Milo was a bit flustered at this question, the small Wooloo was still asleep in his arm.

Milo answered: “I have many grass fields where they live freely and in small herds. I then lead them from field to field with my Yamper, to make sure the grass can grow back in their absence. This is why you need such a big pasture for a Wooloo heard! And I have several herds, each with their own big pasture. Some are for producing wool, some get exported into other regions, others get trained to help out in my gym puzzles. Some even become partners with other trainers when they are back in the wild on different Routes!” He gently patted the small Wooloo’s head, whose nose twitched and continued snoozing. “Or they are like this little one here who just wants to see the world!” Milo laughed.

Gordie was astonished, but suddenly noticed something. As they continued to walk next to each other under shadow-casting trees, he asked: “I wanted to ask that… why did you chase that Wooloo? Wouldn’t it have been easier to just return it to its Pokéball?”

Milo snickered, then answered with a smile: “Ah, you see, my Wooloo are all wild, they are born on the fields! They don’t ‘belong’ to me, really, I don’t train them, I just guide them to their new lives. Trainers and new owners can catch or trade them one day, maybe - but for now, I want them to be free, without a master to follow!”

This answer made Gordie snort a little with a suppressed giggle. Milo tilted his head in a questioning manner at this noise, to which Gordie answered, not being able to hide his grin: “The thing with you being a ‘guide’? You told me that last week when you spoke about young trainers who start their gym challenger life at your gym! You know, like being a helpful guide on their way, the starting point?”

This observation made Milo blush, and he seemed immensely chuffed. He scratched his neck and answered: “Haha, I never saw it that way, never made that connection!” Gordie wanted to give him a shoulder pat, but stopped himself, maybe it was too much, so he just ended up with a (slightly dodged but not too awkward) light pat on Milo’s big forearm: “Heh, you are the shepard of trainers! And the Wooloo!”

If the previous statement had made Milo blush, it now had lit his face on fire. “Ahahaha, stop it, you make me blush!” and blinked a few times in disbelief while trying to wave off Gordie’s words with a grin.

_What a beautiful, heartfelt reaction._

_Gordie felt his heart skip a beat, but he tried to not let it show._

He simply pushed his glasses up again, which was sliding on his slightly sun-sweaty nose, and shouldered his backpack anew, suppressing an equally big grin.

They continued to walk next to each other, accompanied by the happy tippy-taps of rookie herd dog Yamper.

In the distance, Turffield was now visible behind the trees. Their road lead them directly to it, only a small hill and another pasture lay in front of them, with wooden gates and low stone walls. Along their way stood a few fruit trees which sprinkled their white and pink blossoms on the fields.

Milo suddenly said: “Hey… What do think? Would you like this Wooloo?” and smiled a bit shyly at Gordie. Gordie on the other hand was perplexed, and immediately exclaimed, “Oh, no, no, I can’t accept a gift!” But Milo’s eyes widened, the sun sparkling in his pupils: “You are my guest and you caught him! I insist!”

Gordie was even more surprised now, but somehow… he couldn’t resist. _The same way Milo had given him his scarf._ _It wasn’t bribery, or something to make him indebted, no… It felt like he genuinely cared. Cared for… him…?_

With a loving gesture, Milo patted the Wooloo’s head, which opened one sleepy eye and yawned. “What do you think, hm? Do you want to join Gordie and see the world some more?” A small tiny “ _Woo…_ ” came as an answer, and the Wooloo squinted in a happy manner, ready to fall asleep again.

“ _Do you have an empty Pokéball?_ ” Milo whispered, “ _You should be able to catch it easily and it will be yours!_ ” and nodded with a gentle smile. Gordie was flustered, and immediately rummaged around in his backpack. He pulled out an Ultra Ball, but before he caught the sleeping Wooloo in Milo’s arms, he stammered quietly, blushing a bit more than he had anticipated: “ _O-Ok, I’ll catch it. … But I will trade you a Pokémon back! I also insist!_ ” Gordie added with a pout.

Milo snickered and held out Wooloo a little. Gordie took the Ultra Ball in his hand, and gently threw it a few centimetres away from the small Pokémon, where it landed with a small _ploff_ on Wooloo’s poofy wool.

In a flash of light, the Ultra Ball opened and Wooloo disappeared into it. The ball wobbled a few times in Milo’s hands…

…And with a satisfying _click_ , it stood still.

“There you go!” grinned Milo, holding out the Ultra Ball to Gordie.

With a tiny bit of hesitation, Gordie took it. “Thank you!” he lit up, looking back at Milo.

_Their eyes met._

_The rose petals from a nearby Cheri berry tree fell gently to the ground, softly by their feet._

“U-Uh, as I said, I want you to trade another Pokémon! If I get something from your farm, I want you to get one of my rock Pokémon back!” blushed Gordie, and they continued their walk.

“My, my, you don't have to, I assure you!” waved Milo next to him. But Gordie was determined now, and turned the Ultra Ball in his hands.

The warm cobble stone road lead them to the city.

As they entered from the Northern gate, Gordie was wrecking his brain.

**“What Pokémon could I give Milo???”**

_He felt so chuffed by having a Wooloo, a gentle and curious Pokémon, one that even many children had as their first partner in life. Cute and fluffy, then strong and fast once it evolved to a Dubwool. The perfect gift and companion. How could he even match this?_

“Gordie?”

_A Geodude? No, not cute enough. A Rhyhorn? No, no, too big. An Aron, maybe? No, that was more Steel than Rock. Relicanth, Binacle and Tirtouga all needed water, that would be too cumbersome for Milo. Stonjourner, perhaps… But that didn’t feel right either. A Rolycoly? No, they were too common, he wanted it to be special._

“Gordie?”

_So, maybe an Aerodactyl or Tyrunt, something rare? But, no, no, Milo would feel overwhelmed and uncomfortable. A Minior? But they weren’t easy to keep around the house, same for Cranidos and Shieldon. Even less so an Onix, who would keep an Onix around the house? Really, that was such a BIG-_

“Hey, Gordie!”

Gordie twitched as Milo tapped his shoulder. “We’re here!” smiled Milo and opened his arms with a welcoming gesture. It was entrance to Turffield, a stone gate with a big inviting wooden sign. Gordie could even see the roof of the gym stadium already, hidden behind houses and trees.

The Pokémon-Giving question had disappeared from Gordie’s mind, and he was fully taking in the feeling of his surroundings.

The houses were all quaint and tidy, small and built with grey stone. Between the buildings were green grassy fields and flowers, big standing stones and tiny family-run shops that sold berries, blossoms, and other homegrown products. From afar, he could smell a faint flavour of freshly baked bread and cut grass, as well as the earthy scent of sunlit stone and ground. Around the whole town were terrace-like fields and pathways between, that embraced everything like a bowl, with the Gym in the middle.

“Come, I’ll show you my town!” smiled Milo and waved Gordie to follow him.

Gordie was fully engulfed with the comfortable warmth of Turffield. Exactly the kind of vacation and trip he had needed. And having Milo with him made everything even more… homely.

_What were these thoughts? Gordie wondered to himself. The sunshine and change of surroundings made him soft, he concluded, as if the sudden warmth was melting the snow on his soul._

“It’s not the biggest town, but we have a few sights here you can visit!” smiled Milo next to Gordie. He pointed at the faraway hills across the town, where a gigantic white glyph was drawn. Gordie had heard of it before, but never seen in in person. It was bigger than expected, and really had an aura of historic awe to it, even from far away.

They continued to walk, and Milo greeted a few passing villagers left and right. “Morning!” “Hello!” “How have you been, Mr Jenkins?” Gordie noticed it and grew a bit anxious, he was a celebrity as well, they were both in their Gym Leader outfits after all - he should greet people too. But more than a few affirmative head-nods and hand waves was everything he could muster right now, as people noticed them and greeted the duo.

“Oh yeah, these are standing stones!” smiled Milo and patted a large stone next to him along the pathway. “They are signs of elementary types, and hold much information carried over the years and centuries!” Gordie looked up at that big sight: “Whoa.” That was really a big stone. Perfect for a fan of rocks.

“You have hot springs in Circhester, right?” asked Milo. Gordie immediately answered: “Yeah, we have those! The traditional one from legend, the Hero’s Bath, and other ones like public bath houses and saunas!”

Milo seemed chuffed to hear that. He mumbled a bit shyly: “I have never been to those … I can imagine that they are amazing in winter!” he added after a beat with a big smile and a blush.

_Gordie wanted to blurt out: “You can come visit me next week!” but he didn’t want to overdo it. Especially not in public. Maybe Milo would be overwhelmed by a sudden invitation…?_

_… Maybe Milo wanted him to invite him? Or was that just wishful thinking? Was he interpreting too much into this?_

_Then again, people saw him as headstrong and direct. The “cool” Gym leader. He should invite Milo, be a good host, show him Circhester too._

_Or was that too fast?_

_Caught between these two sentiments of overdoing or underdoing it, Gordie stared into the open air for a second._

As Gordie stared, an older gentleman, with a walking cane and knitted vest, walked up to Milo and said: “Had some Wooloo runnin’ off again, eh?” and gave a husky laugh. Milo turned around, as friendly as ever, and answered: “Yes, but we caught the little one again, thanks to Gordie! I think I need to train my Yamper a little bit more!” Milo kneeled down and patted the excited Yamper’s head. “Who’s a good little herding dog??” he laughed and then ruffled the Yamper’s fluffy cheeks. The little dog barked happily, _“Yamp! Ya-Yamp!”_ and panted excitedly, tongue hanging out the side.

Gordie gasped, as a sudden idea hit him.

_That was it!_

“Milo, where is the local Pokémon Center?” asked Gordie, getting excited. Milo seemed confused, but got up and pointed down the circular path: “Down this street, then left and up the hill, on the outer ring, do you need anything-“ But Milo didn’t have time to finish his sentence, because Gordie was sprinting off, yelling, “I'll be right back!!!”

With a gigantic grin on his face, shouldering his backpack, his hair and blazer fluttering in the wind, Gordie ran over the dusty paths up to where the Center was.

Milo, having been left behind with the locals, was still a bit bamboozled, but felt confident that Gordie knew what he was doing. _After all, Gordie was cool… He smiled._

After a bit more smalltalk with the locals, talking about the weather, the upcoming berry harvest, and the quality of Wooloo wool this season, Milo saw Gordie sprinting back towards him. Gordie was sweating a little in the sun, a bit out of breath from running down the hill, but his face bore a big smile.

In his hand, he held a blue Great Ball.

Milo waved goodbye to the old farmer he had been talking to, then turned to Gordie.

“You’re back! What did you get?” asked Milo, tilting his head. Gordie was still panting, but happily standing there. With big jolly eyes behind the blue-tinted sunglasses, Gordie grinned: “I used the Pokémon Center PC, and... I got you a Pokémon to trade for your Wooloo!”

Scratching his neck, Milo was really flustered, and he smiled: “Oh my, you don’t need to get me something, it’s fine, really-“ but Gordie’s grin grew wider and he spoke: “No, no, no, I have the PERFECT Rock Pokemon for you!”

“Oh!” wondered Milo, his eyebrows bolting up a little. Seeing Gordie so determined made him happy, and he certainly didn’t want to cheapen Gordie’s gift. Being a good host and tour guide, he tapped Gordie on his shoulder to signal to him to follow him. “If that is the case, then let’s go to my Gym, you can take your backpack off and you can give me everything in peace and quiet, no need for us to loiter in the streets!”

“True!” nodded Gordie, he wanted this Pokémon to feel special too for Milo.

After all, he had never caught a Pokémon out of another man’s arms before…

Gordie blushed.

_My, what were all these blushes today, he thought? Was the sun really that strong today? Gordie wondered._

Milo pointed with his gloved hand at the Gym and said: “Let’s go in here, we can have a chat and a tea in my Gym!”

~ ~ ~

A bit later, Milo and Gordie found themselves in the Turffield Gym. The Gym was closed for contestants today, so both could take a calm walk-around in the building. In the big room where the challenge and hay roll riddles took place, Milo had already ordered for a tea pot with two cups, that one of his staff quickly hurried to them on a tray.

In the distance was the door that lead to the stadium. Milo’s personal herd dog Yamper was still following the two with happy tiptaps, and then began to run around on the fields. Gordie put his backpack down against a hay roll, and then they both sat on one, next to each other, tea tray between them.

“I always found that using Pokémon for your Gym is pretty creative. Mine is just… sand traps and detectors, you know, technical stuff.” said Gordie as he looked around. The grassy fields were well-cared for, the hay rolls neatly stacked, and the big neon signs were cleaned and ready for action. Milo poured some tea for the two and handed Gordie one cup, saying: “Thank you, the Wooloo in my Gym are specially trained to follow anyone’s guidance, and they have fun that way too! I have a few herds that change around every day, so that no Wooloo is overworked, and they can rest between ‘shifts’!”

Gordie took the cup, and the porcelain felt nice in his hands. In here, the air-conditioned and neon-lit Gym hall, it was nice again to have something warm and comfy in your palms. “Some sugar?” asked Milo and quickly dropped two sugar cubes in his teacup. “No thank you…!” answered Gordie, he was more of a ‘milky coffee’ and ‘hot chocolate’ type of guy, but tea could make for a nice change once in a while.

Milo continued: “Having Pokémon in your Gym challenge actually calms the newcomers down. Such a big empty hall can feel overwhelming, especially when it’s their first time - but seeing fluffy familiar Pokémon and my Gym trainers quickly takes them back to reality!” Milo stirred his tea with a tiny spoon, and that small clinking noise of metal against porcelain echoed pleasantly in the hall for a few seconds.

Gordie took a sip of his own tea. He immediately gasped; this tea was delicious! A nice fruity aroma that lingered on his tongue, and quickly gave way to a more full-bodied taste, nearly a bit spicy at the end too. “Whoa… This tastes delicious!” sighed Gordie excitedly, and looked at Milo, who seemed very chuffed at this remark.

“Haha, thank you! It’s my own blend, I cultivate berries and flowers in my greenhouse, and I like combining them to different tea flavours! This is Pecha Berry, mixed with a bit of Pomeg and Cheri Berries… I hope to one day find one mix that really tastes unique and amazing! I sell my different teas in my Gym souvenir shop too, maybe you have seen the ads, they sell actually really well, and I plan on expanding…”

Milo’s voice had ebbed away into silence. He looked pensive and stared at his teacup.

In this short moment of quiet, Gordie could see something like sadness flickering in Milo’s normally so big and friendly eyes.

“Here I go talking about business again…” mumbled Milo, turning the cup gently in his hand. The golden clear tea swayed to the side, crystalline bits of sugar still floating in it, dissolving.

He continued and sighed: “Hah… It sometimes feels like I’m selling my hobby for profit. It’s not a bad thing, it’s nice to make money with a thing you love and care about, but…” he took a sip, “But… It’s also as if I was taking advantage of my passion and position. Selling out.”

In this very short moment of clarity, Gordie saw one very important thing.

_Behind the always friendly face of Milo was also someone who cared and had his own worries._

_Milo had worries too._

_Gordie understood in this very moment… that he was not alone._

_Alas, Milo’s worries were different than his own, but similar in many ways. While Gordie had never given a second thought about his stone collection merchandise he sold in the gift shop, he had been worried about his own position too. Had he not inherited the title from his mother, who was the Gym leader before him? He was always the “son”, the “second generation” to have the Gym, not out of his own merit, but because it just... had fallen to him, the eldest son. It was his heritage. He hadn’t even wanted the Gym, and now it had been split between his mum and him. It always had been that way, his mother-_

“Oh, sorry, I didn’t want to be a downer!” gasped Milo and seemed awfully embarrassed about his slip of sudden thoughts.

“No, no, you’re right…” spoke Gordie softly, still thinking, looking at his tea as well. As if the little ripples of this tea would help him guide these thoughts, he stared at it absentmindedly, and said: “We are in the public eye and sell a lot of ourselves, photo cards, merchandise, Gym outfits, while also being under constant observation of the media and social media, posting pictures, doing ads, going to fan events, signings and radio shows...”

As Milo looked at him to listen, Gordie’s eyes suddenly met his.

_They were both slightly emotional, as if this private moment of just the two in a lonely big room, away from all eyes of the world, had opened the floodgates of honesty and dropped the walls of public performance._

_A connection._

Gordie stammered, “I-I think it’s good to take pride in your work and feel passionate about it. You are not selling your hobby, you are making money with what you love, and people love you for it as well. It’s honest, it’s what you love doing, and showing that to the world is totally fine…!”

Milo blinked slowly, and nodded, his smile crumpled with emotion. “Yeah… You’re right, Gordie… We chose this life and should make sure we lead it well. People love us, and some even look up to us. We do what we love, with honesty and care, and that is a great thing.”

_This sentence stung a bit, since Gordie hadn’t really chosen to be a Gym leader, but… it was essentially true what Milo said: Gordie had led an extraordinary life without financial worries, and he was popular. Training Rock Pokémon had been his passion for all his life, not following the footsteps of being an Ice Gym leader, and he had succeeded. He was living the dream, being the most respected Rock trainer in the whole region._

_It was not as if his own problems didn’t matter in the grand scheme of things, they were still there, for certain – but it gave some perspective. The perspective of someone else looking at him eye to eye and… understanding._

_Being finally understood in his position._

_That he was really not alone._

“ _Thank you…_ ” whispered Milo and gave Gordie a nice shoulder pat.

“ _Oh, it’s… it’s nothing… Thank you too…_ ” mumbled Gordie back, blushing at this heartfelt gesture, and pushed up his sunglasses a bit more.

They both sat there, taking a sip of tea. It still tasted amazing.

_And Milo selling this tea in his merchandise store as well didn’t change a thing about its beautiful flavour and warmth in this moment._

_Having opened just a little about their worries, they knew that there was a lot more under the surface, but it felt good already. Maybe it would lead to more along the way._

A comfortable moment of silence passed.

“Oh!” exclaimed Gordie and quickly jumped down the hay roll to grab his backpack. “Your trade!” he said and pulled out the Great Ball.

“My, my, I said it wasn’t necessary, Gordie, I have such a big Wooloo farm, you can certainly have the little one, I don’t expect anything back from your prestigious collection-“

“Nu-uh!” interrupted Gordie and wiggled his finger, “You will take this one and I insist!” After a small beat, Gordie added with a bit of a blush on his cheeks: “I specifically chose this one for you. It means something to me.”

Milo was a bit flustered and tilted his head, the sun hat moving with him: “Then… I will have this one.” Gordie have him the Great Ball into both hands. “This one is for you…!” said Gordie a bit too loudly, excited the whole situation, the gift, and the coming reaction. “You can throw it!” he added quickly.

“Haha, alright!” laughed Milo, took a little stance, and threw the Great Ball a few meters away. “Come out!!” he yelled joyfully.

And in a flash of light, the Great Ball opened, and out came…

“ _RUFF, RUFF!_ ” barked the little Pokémon, landing on its feet and panting excitedly.

Milo’s eyes widened with joy, his smile reached his ears and he turned immediately to Gordie, stammering: “I-Is… is that a…?”

Gordie nodded, blushing harder at Milo’s happy face, and answered: “Yeah, it’s a Rockruff. Small Rock type dog, not native to Galar. I got one from a trader once, and bred a few, this is one of the little ones.”

The little Rockruff noticed Milo, its new trainer, and began running towards him, tail waggling and yapping excitedly in a happy tone: “ _Ruff-Ruff!!!_ ”

Milo immediately got down on his knees to pet him, and gave the little dog a few pats on the head and the side. “Oh my…! He’s adorable!!!!” whispered Milo, completely entranced by the small Pokémon, “I have never seen one in real life!!”

The little Rockruff rolled on its back and Milo gave it a few belly scratches. It wriggled happily and panted even more, “ _Rockruff!!!_ ”

Gordie scratched his own neck a bit nervously, but continued, still flustered: “Well… You said that your Yamper needs training herding the Wooloo, and… maybe he just needs someone to do it with… Like a partner to help him…”

Milo’s Yamper in the distance noticed the newly appeared Rockruff and came running at full speed. “Hey, Rockruff, greet your new friend!” said Milo and gave a last little pat to Rockruff’s fluffy neck fur, and then it darted off immediately. The two dogs met, immediately looked interested and happy about each other, booping noses and sniffing the other one’s fur.

“I... I hope you will like him…” mumbled Gordie, but to his surprise, Milo was more than overjoyed. He turned to Gordie with wide open eyes and stammered: “Gordie!!! That’s so sweet of you!! I’d never thought that… Oh my, thank you so much!!”

And in the most unexpected move, Milo hugged Gordie.

Chest to chest, close, his big arms around Gordie’s large frame.

_In this embrace of warmth and proximity, Gordie felt suddenly overwhelmed with emotion._

_His own hands hovering in the air from the surprise for a few seconds, he then gently hugged back._

_The palms met Milo’s broad back, and he patted and caressed him for a moment._

_Milo did the same, a few soft pats of his gloved hand meeting Gordie’s blazer, between the shoulder blades._

_How nice it felt to be held._

_Supported._

_Resting each other’s heads on the other one’s shoulder._

_Gordie now noticed that Milo was a bit taller than him, it felt good._

_Good to feel someone so close._

_One who understood, and could warm his heart with kindness, generosity, and empathy._

_The warmth of a hug._

_And in this comforting warmth was the soothing smell of grass and sunshine._

**When was the last time he had hugged someone…?**

_Gordie could feel tears welling up in his eyes, as this question sparked in his mind, but he quickly swallowed it down, not wanting to upset Milo in this beautiful moment. He was a guest here, a colleague, and Milo was a wonderful host._

_But if this afternoon had told him one thing, was that he could possibly open up to Milo._

_With time, slowly, but surely._

This hug had only lasted a few seconds, but the emotion had been deeper than that.

They parted, hands sliding off each other, both a bit overtaken by emotion.

“Ehehe…” laughed Milo shyly, “Sorry for hugging you a bit suddenly, some people tend to be taken aback…”

Gordie cleared his throat, and answered, voice a bit scraggly, “Nah, it’s fine, it… was nice, thank you.”

They both stood there, post-hug and emotional, in the background, the two dogs ran around on the Gym fields, happily jumping and playing around.

Jolly yapping of “ _Yamp!_ ” and “ _Ruff!_ ” was heard from afar, and both Yamper and Rockruff seemed to be the best of pals already.

“Why don’t I show you my Gym some more? There is much more to see!” remarked Milo and pointed at the door leading to the field.

“Great idea, yeah!” answered Gordie, nodding quickly.

“Then grab your teacup, and let’s go!” smiled Milo and picked up the tea tray.

And so, they walked towards the big door, over the grassy fields, the two dogs following them in their tour.

~ ~ ~

The rest of the day had been very relaxing and soothing for Gordie. While nothing had matched the depth of their short talk on the Gym challenge field, it had been a calming and wholesome day. Milo really was a good host, and their talks over tea had been a joy. On the roof of the Turffield stadium, in the Sky Lounge, they had sat down and talked some more, sharing little anecdotes and city histories, finding comfort in these little talks.

But now, the day was over, and the sun began to set. In front of Turffield Stadium, they both stood to say goodbye, the Corviknight Cab already there to pick him up.

Gordie shouldered his backpack anew, and got down on one knee, saying goodbye to the two new herding dogs. “Goodbye, Yamper and Rockruff! And be good boys!” They both happily accepted their headpats, with panting smiles and waggling tails.

He got up again and was face to face with Milo. Milo smiled at him in the evening sun, the orange dawn giving him a warm shine.

“I guess this is goodbye for today, huh…?” said Gordie, and he couldn’t suppress a saddened smile.

“Ah, don’t worry Gordie, we’ll see each other again, there are many days ahead of us!” grinned Milo.

Milo held out his hand to shake goodbye, but Gordie looked at it for a second and said: “No need to be so formal, we are on a hug basis already!” and pushed up his sunglasses with a sly grin.

“Haha, alright!” laughed Milo and opened his arms to say goodbye.

They hugged again, short and sweet, with a few shoulder pats and a gentle squeeze.

The ice had been broken, and they had gotten closer today. Gordie was also very chuffed that he had played that goodbye hug off in such a cool manner too, heh.

And so, they parted, their eyes met, and they nodded in an appreciation.

“That was a great day today, thank you, Milo.” said Gordie, “Let’s meet again soon…!”

“Yeah, of course! I’ll write you!” agreed Milo and gave a cheerful thumbs-up.

The cab door opened, and Gordie got in. The big Corviknight spread its wings, screeched a big metallic “CORVIIIII!” and with massive flaps, the cab began to rise.

Gordie opened the cab window and waved goodbye, his hair flowing in the wind, he yelled: “Goodbye, Milo!!!” Milo yelled back from the ground, already getting smaller in the distance, “See you soon, Gordie!!!”

Beneath him, the town of Turffield got farther and farther away, and soon, the stadium and little houses were only small patches on the vast green landscape below.

The cab soared over the thin clouds into the warm orange sunset, that began to transform into a red pink, the night sky breaking in with clear blues and beginning twinkling stars.

Gordie opened his backpack, pulled out the Ultra Ball and turned it in his hands.

The metal and plastic bits felt cool in his palms.

“Come out, Wooloo…!” he whispered and let the ball fall in his lap.

In a flash of light, the little Wooloo appeared, sitting on his thighs, and bleated softly: “ _Woo-loo!_ ”

Gordie smiled as he saw that cute little Pokemon. He pointed at the cab window and said: “Hey… Wanna look outside? You can see the whole country from here!”

The Wooloo looked excited, so he inched closer to the window, that the little one could look outside.

He held it securely in both hands, and said, “There is so much to see out there…”

“Woooo…” gasped the Wooloo, the landscape was stunning:

Flying over Galar, this little sheep was witnessing more than any of his peers, laying its black cute button eyes on the world itself. The dark green fields below with streaks of orange light disappearing behind the mountains, far away cities of unknown size and magnitude, mountains with snow-covered peaks and edged cliffs, and even further away, the ocean on the horizon.

The wind blew in their faces, Gordie’s hair and Wooloo’s wool swaying in the breeze. He patted the Wooloo’s head gently, and the little sheep nuzzled his palm back.

The last rays of warm sunshine shimmering in their eyes.

_What a warm day today had been, with many adventures too: a new outlook had been found for a curious Wooloo, and a new partner for a jolly Yamper._

_And maybe even more than that._

_Gordie smiled._

****

**_TO BE CONTINUED_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading my fanfic!! I will continue to write it, I have so much fun with these two, I love this rareship from the bottom of my heart!


	3. Interlude

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After Gordie's visit, they both wrote messages to each other over many days. Things were slowly set in motion...

The following weeks were a whirl of messages between Gordie to Milo.

The little Wooloo had found a great home in Circhester, hopping through snow and nearly disappearing in the never-ending white landscape of the region on walks: Gordie had send many pictures to Milo of his adorable new friend. And of course, Milo sent many photos of his two new herding dog pals back.

“Look how high he can jump!!” _(accompanied by a pic of Wooloo bursting out of the snow)_

“Haha, cute! Yamper and Rockruff trained some sheep herding today, they still have a lot to learn though!” _(accompanied by three pictures of the two small exhausted dogs on the pasture, fast asleep, Wooloos running in the background)_

This exchange went on for many days, sending each other cute pictures of their Pokémon, with the occasional sunny or snowy selfie respectively.

Gordie felt intensely smitten by this exchange. There was just such a … lightness to these messages, checking in on the other one, asking how their day was, sending some photos, all in all – just very wholesome. It took his mind off from the Gym leader business, and he found himself glancing at his phone more than ever to check his notifications, even directly after Gym Battles sometimes.

~ ~ ~

Today had been a long day, several trainers had challenged Gordie to a duel today, but he had won all of them. Somehow, he felt even better than usual, full of energy to tackle new things, and he was even more excited to tell Milo about his wins today.

Gordie was back in his own flat on top of the Circhester Gym Stadium, a small yet luxurious apartment full of modern design featuring glass, decorative stones and modern mahogany furniture. He threw himself on his king-sized bed and immediately took out his phone. The night had already risen, and the dark sky with twinkling stars was outside his spacious windows.

“I won three duels today, Milo! How was your day?” wrote Gordie quickly, his fingers flying over his phone screen, he hadn’t even taken his trainer gloves off yet.

It only took less than a minute for Milo to answer, and Gordie smiled as he saw Milo’s ‘ _Typing…’_ on the phone.

“Wow, congrats!!!!” answered Milo, followed by many Yamper celebratory emojis. “I lost two duels today, but they were great contestants, I hope they go far!” he continued.

“Aww, don’t worry, they will be happy to have won their first badge!” typed Gordie back quickly. After thinking for a moment, he added, “Tomorrow will be a better day for the best shepherd I know!”

This last sentence was met with a round sparkly Wooloo emoji from Milo, which made Gordie smile.

These little talks really brightened up his days, and everything just felt so _effortless_. It was calming, soothing to speak with Milo, and it never felt like an obligation or a weight on his mind. As if they were carrying each other through messages and dialogues alone. He had never expected to be such good friends with a fellow gym leader.

“Friends…” thought Gordie and looked outside for a while.

In the darkened window, he saw his own faded reflection in the snowy forests around Circhester.

_… Had he gained weight again?_

Gordie scoffed, that was really not the time to think about it, anyone would look bad hunched over their phone on a bed. He patted his own tummy. It jiggled a little.

Hm.

He didn’t need these kinds of thoughts right now. Everything was going swimmingly, and his own worries should not cloud that positive outlook of the recent weeks.

Shaking the feeling off, but with knitted eyebrows of worry, he looked back at his phone.

He then began to type, slowly: “Hey Milo, I wanted to ask you something, I kinda worry about my…” he paused, then typed, “… image sometimes, and seeing that you are so good-looking-“

Stopping in his tracks, Gordie tilted his head at his own word choice. Then he erased the "good-looking" and wrote “buff”.

After a beat, he also erased that, and wrote “well-built”, but with a headshake, he discarded that word choice as well. He meticolously typed “a-t-t-r-a-c-t-i-v-e” while squinting with confused raised eyebrows, when suddenly-

**PLING**

**_“Wha…!!!”_ **

Milo had written back first, with a quick message of: “Hey, would you like to come visit again this weekend? I could show you my glass house I have for my flowers and exotic berries! We could do a picnic in there!” Followed by a few customised cute plant emojis.

Gordie had nearly dropped his phone in shock, he had been so deep in thought about his word choice that the sudden notification sound had startled him.

But as the sudden adrenaline spike waned off, Gordie sighed in relief.

Such topics were far easier to talk about in person than via text. That was true, he nodded.

He erased his own previously written words, and wrote anew: “Great idea, I would love to!”

Milo immediately responded: “Wonderful! See you on Saturday, 3 PM in front of my Gym!”

“Looking forward to see you again!” sent Gordie back, and was met with a “Me too!” from Milo, plus smiley and a flower emoji.

Gordie pressed his phone to his chest.

He was overjoyed to have something to look forward to again. To carry the beauty and support he had gotten from these messages into his physical world.

Seeing Milo again…

It somehow made his heart jump with joy.

When had he felt like this the last time? To be so excited to see a person? That must have been quite a while ago.

With a relieved sigh, he let himself fall on the bed.

The coming weekend would be wonderful.

Gordie smiled and closed his eyes.

**TO BE CONTINUED**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A smaller update, I still continue to write this fic, the next chapter will be longer again! Thank you so much for your lovely comments and kudos, your support warms my heart and makes me so happy 💖


	4. The Greenhouse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After Milo's invitation, Gordie arrived in Turffield for a picnic on this beautiful summer day.
> 
> Little did they both know that this meeting would change many things...

Saturday finally rolled around, and Gordie took the Corviknight cab again to Turffield. While his first visit had been a serene one, with soothing winds and landscapes of spring – his second visit now felt energetic, refreshing, and full of unknown adventure: the sun was shining brightly, the blossoms on the fruit trees had turned into hearty greens, and everything was brimming with life.

Gordie leaned with one elbow out the window and overlooked the land below. Many pastures and forests, lush green fields, and tiny fluffy dots of Wooloos running around. The cobble stone roads passed through these spaces like thin and friendly rivers of stone, he thought, and walking on them had been really lovely last time.

He would soon arrive in Turffield, he could already see the Gym Stadium in the distance, the roof peeking out the treetops. With a large wing flap, the Corviknight began its decent, soaring in the midday breeze towards the little plaza in front of the Gym.

Gordie looked down, and suddenly, he saw something that made his face lighten up: Far away, out of the Gym glass doors, he saw a person rushing out, followed by two small creatures, and started waving at him.

There was no doubt, he would recognise that large frame and two jolly dogs anywhere now: It was Milo, with Yamper and Rockruff beside his feet, who had all come out to greet him. Gordie waved back excitedly, his hair fluttering in the wind, and slowly, a grin formed on his face.

~ ~ ~

The cab landed gently on the stone pavement, and Gordie jumped out of the cab immediately, opening the door with a delighted swing, ready to go. Milo came running towards him, his arms open, hollering: “Gordie!!!” The two excited dogs left and right of him also came running, panting with waggling tails. Gordie could only open his arms in answer… And they met with a big warm hug.

Milo patted Gordie’s back in this gigantic bear hug, Gordie’s palms brushed equally over his back, with the same comfy energy. After a gentle squeeze, meeting chest to chest, they parted, and an overexcited Milo stood in front of Gordie, in full Gym gear, sunhat at a cheeky angle on his head from the hug. He exclaimed, his smile brighter than the sun: “Welcome back, I’m so glad to see you!!” Gordie nodded, and grinned back, “I’m glad to be back too! It has been a little while since we saw each other personally!”

The two small dogs were running around Gordie now, barking excitedly, so he got down in a squat and gave the two some head pats, saying: “And how are you two doing, hm? Are you being good boys to Milo?” The two answered nearly at the same time, with two jolly “Y-Yamper!” and “R-Rockruff!”, still very excited. Milo said from above: “They are making progress, they can at least guide and hold one herd of Wooloo, but there is still a lot to learn!” Gordie got up, his hands resting on his thighs to support himself, then answered: “But they really have gotten a bit bigger since last time, right?” Milo nodded, and said, “They are growing well, the experience on the fields is really good for them, being out in nature is the best way to learn!”

Gordie chuckled, and Milo smiled in return. It was beautiful to see that the two dogs got along so well and could help Milo out in his work. The little Rockruff had been a great gift and new teammate. Seeing the two so happy - now in real life and not only on pictures – warmed Gordie’s heart as well.

“Are you ready for a good picnic and a greenhouse visit?” said Milo, rubbing his hands. “Absolutely!” laughed Gordie, these was something very precious about Milo being so excited to share more of his hometown and food.

Milo hurried away, to quickly grab the picnic basket he had already prepared standing close to the Gym Stadium door and came back beaming with joy. He then pointed at the hills and said to his two dogs: “You two, more training on the herding hills, Group A to C!” The two dogs yapped happily and darted off over the green lawns of Turffield, towards the village gate. Then Milo turned to Gordie and grinned: “And us two, well, follow me!”

With this, they walked next to each other on the dusty winded roads of the sunny town.

~ ~ ~

The footpath lead along the green hills, through the village, around the Gym, to the backside.

Earthy soil mixed with cobblestone roads, flanked by weeds and flowers of all colours and heights – Turffielf had a rustic, down to earth look that really grew on Gordie. It looked wild in a sense, but still neat and tidy. Friendly green all around them on this pretty summer’s day with a clear blue sky.

“The greenhouse is behind the Gym.” said Milo, pointing forward, the picnic basket under his muscly arm. “It’s good for the plants to have both light and shadow over the day, so it’s not in full view for most visitors. You can’t see it when you stand in front of the gym, it stands behind it, in the shadows. … Like a secret in plain sight!” ended Milo with a laugh.

Gordie nodded: “I see! Gyms often have their own structures and dynamics, they may all look the same from the outside, but they often have individual fittings or parts that others don’t have!”

“Exactly!” responded Milo, “I have seen some amazing ones, like Nessa’s Olympic pool! Apparently, you can even rent it for photoshoots or contests! … I only have an indoor lawn for my sheep, not really something fancy, but alas! Haha!”

Gordie lifted one eyebrow quickly, he had definitely heard a little underlying sadness in that statement, so he immediately followed up: “You have your greenhouse, that’s rad! I don’t have fancy extras either, just a sand obstacle course and my own flat on top of the Gym. … What am I supposed to put in mine? Pet Rock exhibition?”

“Pffff!” snorted Milo with a suppressed laugh, then giggled: “I would love a Pet Rock! They probably make for very nice companions!” After a beat and some more walking, Milo said: “You could have exhibitions of your collections though, don’t you have many rare stones and gems you could show to the public?”

Gordie tilted his head, but then answered a little flatly: “I mean… I could, but it feels a bit private. It’s my passion, but I don’t know if I want to show to a massive crowd of people. It’s probably not that interesting anyway.”

Milo looked at Gordie, his lips parting to say something, squeezing the basket he held a bit closer to his chest, but Gordie continued instead, and said with a sigh: “… I share the Gym with my mum, you know, it’s … _complicated_.”

A calm, yet overpowering silence fell upon the two.

The sand and grit beneath their shoes gently crunched with every one of their steps.

Above, the clear blue sky was streaked with thin white clouds, brushing away in the wind.

“Sorry.” whispered Milo.

“… It’s ok.” smiled Gordie, but the edges of his lips twitched with slight discomfort. “It’s pubically known that we don’t get along that well, and ‘Split Gyms’ are still a rarity, so I don’t blame anyone accidently forgetting about it. I think Galar is the only region with these Two-Type-Two-Leader Gyms.”

Milo looked pensive, then agreed: “Yes, the only other Split Gym I know about is the one in Stow-on-Side. Split between… Bea and Allister, right?”

“Right.” nodded Gordie. “…Although I don’t know why exactly, in my case it’s a family thing, what’s it in their case?”

Tilting his hat, Milo wondered: “Hm… Back then… I think it was something about Allister being too shy to be a Gym leader every week, and Bea needing time off for her training in the mountains, so they split the Gym. Even weeks is Alistair, uneven weeks is Bea, I think they call those ‘Sword’ and ‘Shield’ weeks on social media, right? … Why exactly?”

“Tcch!” scoffed Gordie with a shrug, “No one understands those ultrafans anymore. I think it was something about Bea and me being quite offensive in our fighting styles, so we got called “Sword”, and Alistair and my mum are more on the defensive side with the Ghost and Ice typing, so they are “Shield” respectively. … Or something like that, I don’t get fan culture these days.” and waved the idea away with a leisure gesture.

Just behind the next winding curved path, they could see the big greenhouse. It was built of steel and glass, overgrown with vines and ivy on the roof and walls. From this distance alone, it emitted a scent of humid freshness, and an air of calm tranquillity. Standing there in the shadows of the gigantic Gym stadium, hidden away.

“Whoa…” gasped Gordie. “It looks amazing…” Milo on the other hand grinned back: “Haha, I know, it’s quite an impressive sight! Nobody expects something like this here. And since it’s behind the Gym, it’s half in the shadows and in the sunshine over the course of the day. The sun is pat its zenith, so it’s in the shadow right now.”

Milo pointed at the sky and then the Gym. “That way, the inside is not too hot, and you get an even distribution of light. Perfect for a picnic, don’t you think?” and smiled with big friendly eyes at Gordie.

“Perfect indeed…” wondered Gordie, he really hadn’t expected something like this. “… Thank you for the invitation again!” he quickly added, blushing a little.

“It’s nothing!” grinned Milo, but after beat, also added, “… Although it’s not nothing, not everyone gets to see my greenhouse. It’s only for … i-important people.”

These last few words had sounded a little mumbled, as if Milo had changed his mind mid-sentence, but Gordie paid no attention to it.

And with a few more steps, they had reached the high glass doors of the greenhouse. From outside, there was no way to see all the way inside, not even to the opposite glass wall, so thick and dense was the greenery. A few droplets of water ran down the windows, the humidity setting on it and dripping down. It was already apparent that this place was full of life.

“Please, after you!” said Milo, opened the door with a little mint-green steel key and held the glass door open, shouldering the picnic basket anew.

A waft of many fine smells greeted Gordie as he stepped inside: the earthy notes of the soil, the sweetness of fruits and berries ripe and blossoming, and the soft humidity of the air, that enwrapped everything in a gentle bouquet that seemed to say:

_Welcome._

“Whoa…” gasped Gordie and immediately looked around himself, taking careful steps on the path before him.

He was surrounded by palms, trees and bushes, bright flowers and ferns of many sizes and colours. Some were as small as a Pokéball, and some plants reached the glass ceiling, so tall were they. Inbetween them were vines and ivy, connecting everything with each other to one beautiful cornucopia. Gordie couldn’t even tell what these all of these plants were, he thought, some he had only seen in schoolbooks along time ago or on photos from travels. Over there, these should be some berries from Hoenn, and these, were these apricorns? He had never seen some with yellow and blue dots! It was impossible to see where this garden started and ended - the greenery was so overwhelming, it felt like being taken to a whole new world. The outside world, the Gym, the people, the town, nothing mattered here.

They were in their own little pocket dimension of pure nature.

“… Do you like it?” asked Milo softly behind him, and Gordie could only nod vividly in astonishment. “It’s … amazing! I love it!!!” A big smile had formed on Gordie’s face, and his bright happy eyes made Milo brush with embarrassment.

“Oh my! Thank you!” chuckled Milo, feeling a bit too chuffed about this compliment. “… I built and designed it myself, then planned and planted all the greenery you can see here, making sure that everything fits together.” (He squeezed the picnic basket a tiny bit more to his chest.) “But… I have never shown it to many people, so it’s somewhat of an urban legend around here too, the townfolks rumour a lot about what I grow in here, but… to me… I only let… important people in here, as I said. People who… matter to me.”

_Their eyes met._

_The warm air of the greenhouse was all around them with its gentle atmosphere._

“A-Anyways…!” started Milo again, fidgeting a little, blushing even more, and pointed down the path. “Through there is a little patch of lawn, perfect for picnics! After you, you can lead, Gordie!”

Gordie felt extremely smitten again, he, ‘a person who mattered’? ‘Important’ to Milo? That felt incredibly nice to hear, especially coming from someone like Milo, a great co-worked and friend, maybe even more than a f-

“Sure thing…!” smiled Gordie, abruptly taken out of his thoughts, and walked forward.

The soft soil beneath his shoes felt great, and walking down the path, it felt like every few steps the air smelled differently. Even though he couldn’t name them, it was an amazing experience: Gold Berries from Johto, Passho Berries from Hoenn, the rare Niniku Berry with its azure flowers, and the intriguing unknown smell of the Engima Berry flowers, with black and white swirls on their petals. Past the trees, through the vines, and over there… he could see the little free space of the picnic lawn Milo had mentioned.

“I see it!” smiled Gordie and pointed in front of him. Milo behind him nodded and held on to his sunhat, to not lose it in the thicket.

What a beautiful spot that was, thought Gordie, surrounded by plants but big enough so that a few people could comfortably sit down in the grass. Little bushes with soft round leaves and two big trees with dark barks and strong branches were around them, and on the ground, in a circle, tiny flowers, blue, red, yellow and white.

“Alright, here we are!” smiled Milo and took out a large picnic blanket from the basket. With a big swing of his muscular arms, it was gently draped over the grass, like a little oasis of red and white squares within a jungle. “You can sit down!” he grinned at Gordie, “It’s all ready for us!”

“Thank you!” smiled Gordie, scratching his neck, wow, he had never had such an exclusive picnic before, especially not in such a setting, with such a caring man like Milo. Or any man alone, for that matter.

As they both sat down, Milo took has hat off and Gordie put his blazer to the side, making themselves comfortable. “Tea? Freshly brewed Cheri berry blossoms with a bit of Persim!” asked Milo, pulling out a large thermos with two plastic cups. Gordie could only smirk and answer with a cheeky: “From you, _always_.”

~ ~ ~

The hours passed as gently as the smell of spring flowers in the morning dew.

Milo really had come prepared for this picnic, with a self-made fruit salad, cucumber sandwiches, Kuo Berries as sides (“They are savoury, taste them, they’re amazing!”), tiny tapas and cheese cubes to snack on, and in a separate cooler, a frozen Hondew Berry for each one, to munch on as a little dessert treat. Milo carefully explained that everything had come form his own farm and plantations, and Gordie listened attentively. It was fascinating to hear all these explanations, and they all even tasted amazing.

As usual, their talks were light and breezy, sharing anecdotes and finding things to discuss, like the newest movies, the most extraordinary Gym challengers, to the latest social media gossip.

_What they didn’t knew was, that from there, their dialogue would slowly take a turn from light chats to heavier topics._

“Did you see the new pics Nessa posted on Pokégram? How does she even get all these jobs, it’s astonishing! Like every week a new ad campaign!” said Gordie, munching his last cucumber sandwich. Lifting his eyebrows in confusion behind his sunglasses, he added: “All I ever did was a fashion line for the Hammerlocke Boutique! And that was only a one-off limited run, that was over in 2 weeks!”

“At least I heard you had fun and got a nice photo shoot out of that; I saw it!” grinned Milo widely. “I never had a fashion line, all I do is selling my Gym outfit, and people like that one for their Gym challenges or as workout clothes. … After all, Nessa sees me as her ‘rival’ for some reason, maybe just because of the type advantage, so if I started rivalling her in fashion too, she would be really miffed!” laughed Milo, a bit flustered.

“I can imagine. … I never really had a rival in that sense…” wondered Gordie, then he suddenly jolted up: “Shouldn’t we two be rivals by type advantage too, by that logic? Grass wins against Rock, after all!” And gave Milo a few hearty shoulder pats.

Milo promptly choked on his cheese cube he had just eaten.

“Rivals…???” U-Us t-two??” he coughed, and Gordie quickly handed him one of the napkins from the picnic basket. Milo was blushing heavily, and after a beat, he added, quite agitated: “I already have rival I didn’t ask for, I don’t need another one! And you are not a rival, you’re my … best f-friend!”

That, in response, made Gordie blush.

Of course they were friends, best friends now, after so many exchanged messages and lovely talks, hugs and shoulder pats, but hearing it out loud for the first time properly, like a full statement, was… heartwarming.

“ _Thank you, s-same…_ ” mumbled Gordie, pushing up his sunglasses to hide blush and his sparkling eyes. “… A-And sorry for making you choke on that cheese cube.”

“Don’t worry, everything is fine…!” smiled Milo again, tapping his chest a few times. “Besides… the top spot for ‘Gym rivals’ is still occupied by Raihan and Leon after all, the social media kings.”

“… Did you hear they got together recently?” remarked Gordie, picking up a new cucumber sandwich, and inched a bit closer on the picnic blanket for full-on gossip exchange. “I didn’t see it coming, really, but it makes sense, they have always been close, after all.”

“I did see that, that was one gigantic event by Raihan! With TV interview, public announcement and Pokágram stream and everything! With its own hashtag too! ” added Milo after a sip of tea. “I’m really happy for them. People had been curious about them, many rumours for a while, and then they both came out as a couple… Thankfully the public has been very accepting, and I have seen pretty much only praise for the two! First openly gay Gym leader couple in the history of Galar, they said!”

“Hmm, I have sadly seen some bad comments, if you go on different forums and boards…” munched Gordie, a little bit downtrodden, but got immediately interrupted by Milo: “Oh please, don’t visit those sites, nothing good ever comes from them!” Gordie was astonished to see Milo that stern, but he continued, pointing vividly with his teaspoon: “We already have enough on our plates, no need to seek out additional negativity and vitriol to pull us down even more!”

“Huh…!” gasped Gordie in surprise, that was the ‘angriest’ he had ever seen Milo, and that only entailed a slight raise of his voice with a serious tone. With a big sigh, Gordie nodded: “I know, I know, bad habit of mine to seek out bad comments and feel terrible afterwards. I should try and stay on the good side of things.”

Heh, it felt good to get a little kick in the butt to stay focused.

“Exactly!” exclaimed Milo and swung his teaspoon. “… Back to the two, I wonder… I think they are the only Gym leaders – well, Gym Leader and Champ - to be in a relationship right now, aren’t they? I think everyone else of us is single…?” and put his spoon to his lips, thinking.

“Hm…” wondered Gordie too. Then, after a small silence, having finished his sandwich, he mumbled: “Not that I can think of anyone, and if someone was, it would be all over social media and the tabloids. … I think the only rumour I heard once was that Kabu was maybe seeing Nanu in secret, you know, the Darkness Kahuna of Ula’Ula Island…? But that could have been the paparazzi following him to his well-deserved holidays in Alola, smelling a scoop.”

“… That’s also why I chose my greenhouse as a place to meet today, no chance of getting photographed or being asked for autographs. As much as I like the attention, I sometimes want to have my privacy too.” sighed Milo, lifting his teacup to look at the liquid amber tea swaying in it. “… But who am I telling this, you are also a Gym leader! You understand me!” grinned Milo suddenly, closing his eyes with joy.

“Oh!” that took Gordie by surprise, but it was true. “Yeah, definitely, we deal with problems not everyone has to deal with! Some people might say that those are luxury problems, but honestly, they are just as real as other problems, if not even stronger!”

_With this statement, they had again cut to the core of why their felt so at ease with each other: They felt understood. Neither of the two had to explain themselves, and their fame and popularity was a double-edged sword for them, in different ways. Gordie with his tough challenges and a family legacy to uphold, Milo with constant losing to help beginners, and feeling weak in comparison to his peers due to that._

The surrounding greenery still felt comfortable and familiar, and the snacks tasted great. Milo slowly poured another cup for the two, and Milo handed Gordie the plastic cup carefully. He took it in both his hands, and then they sat placidly next to each other, looking at the glass ceiling. The trees and their leaves shielded them from the outside, like friendly roof of nature.

“S-Say…” began Milo, and Gordie looked at him.

Milo seemed very flustered all of a sudden; he was blushing heavily, nervously turning his cup of tea in his gloved hand. Gordie was confused, what did this sudden change in mood mean?

“Um…” started Milo again, avoiding Gordie’s eyes, until he sighed heavily, and his sunken shoulders got more upright again with brittle courage, and Milo turned to Gordie blinking excessively, asking with a trembling voice:

“A-Are you dating anyone at the moment…?? Like a girlfriend, or…” Milo was beet-red, grasping his teacup a lot stronger, “O-Or even like… a b-boyfriend?”

Gordie was flabbergasted, his lips parted in confusion.

Milo seemed even more nervous now: “I-I’m sorry, I … didn’t know, and… a-and honestly that’s way too private to ask someone like that, I-I’m so sorry…!!”

In this moment, Gordie could only chuckle with nervousness, but he felt extremely smitten with this mess of a flustered Milo in front of him on the picnic blanket, that was quite adorable.

“It’s okay to ask, I would keep it a secret like anyone else of us Gym leaders.” Gordie pushed his glasses up again, why was he himself so nervous now? What was this…? Milo’s wide eyes were waiting for an answer. _Wide like the fields of Turffield, you could get lost in these eyes-_

“I… uh… I’m not seeing anyone. Haven’t really in quite a while now.” whispered Gordie. After a small silence, he sighed: “Not really since I became Gym Leader. Before I got the title, I had a few girlfriends, but nothing too serious. … Quite frankly, dating isn’t easy when your family name is that well-known. … And being the first-born of a family of powerful trainers, with a bunch of money and power to inherit, you can never be quite sure if someone likes you for yourself or for your wallet.”

Milo’s eyes sunk to the side, and he adjusted his sunhat anew. “Oh… I… I didn’t want to wake bad memories… That sounds awful… I’m so sorry…” There was an intensely melancholic air to his words. He rested his big forearms on his knees and sunk together even more.

_Like a pile of embarrassment and disappointment, crowned with a sunhat of shielded emotions._

“ _Did I say the wrong thing…?!?!_ ” panicked Gordie immediately in his mind. It was as if Milo had waited for a completely different answer, and Gordie had shot him right out of his cloud nine with his precise words.

Trying to find Milo’s eyes, he hastily continued:

“B-But to answer your question, I didn’t have a girlfriend or recently! Or boyfriend…!! T-Truth be told, I’m…”

Milo’s eyes found his again. Brightening up, Milo turned to Gordie again.

Their big eyes met.

A connection of pure emotionality, ready to open up. Secure. Familiar. Safe.

“I’m…” began Gordie again, but choked with nervousness, his heart with beating in his throat.

_He had never said the following words yet._

_Not out loud._

_To no one._

_“I-I’m…”_

_It was okay. He could say it. Now._

**“I’m bisexual.”**

There it was. The truth spoken out loud for the first time.

Gordie was trembling slightly, his lips pursed together.

Never, not in his wildest dreams he could have imagined saying that to anyone. Not even his mother knew. His dating life had been so dormant in the past few years that he had never paid attention to it, whether to say or state it. Yet it had always been there in his mind, like a fact that wanted to get out one day. Out to the world, to the people, to his possible new partner…

Milo’s eyes widened, then he leaned forward with great curiosity, and seemed equally nervous, still blushing and flustered, and said: “I… I never knew that…! I’m… I’m so p-proud to hear that from you!!”

“Y-Yes…!” blurted Gordie out and fell immediately into nervous rambling: “I… I uh never had a boyfriend though, it somehow never happened! I feel drawn to men, definitely, I felt that in my teenage years for the first time, but… B-but I somehow never found the right guy, I don’t know?? And with the years it somehow seemed to all get more complicated, I mean, haha, dealing with girlfriends was already so difficult, how could I have dealt with finding my first boyfriends too…?? Ahaha….!!” He somehow had started talking with his hands as well, placing down his cup next to him, and continued: “So, uh, I have no like, ‘proper’ experience, but I think that counts as being bisexual…? I definitely have feelings, even though I lack the real life … ‘proof’ for it?? It’s so hard to describe… I can tell you that this was all very difficult finding out when I was in boarding school, and I… I…!!!”

But he was interrupted in his train of thoughts by Milo, who had also put his teacup away and had gently lifted his hand to stop Gordie.

“Please Gordie…”smiled Milo, and a blissful grin formed on his face, his eyes seemingly overflowing emotion. After a warm sigh, Milo spoke, in a voice to melt whole icebergs with its comforting softness:

“Never let anyone invalidate you and your sexuality because you lack ‘romantic’ or ‘real life experience’. Your feelings and emotions count.”

_Gordie was shook to his core._

Like a flash of light hitting his heart, thumping in his chest, bursting with comfort and understanding.

_How long had he waited for someone to tell him that?_

_Not even knowing that he needed to hear that?_

Milo gave him a warm shoulder pat, which seemed to radiate through his whole body, he twitched when the friendly hand touched his blazer.

And with a voice as vulnerable and soft as Gordie had never heard it, Milo continued, looking at him, beaming with a joyful melancholy that was hard to grasp:

“To tell you about me… I can understand you in a similar way, since, you see…”

Gordie could see that under this friendly smile, it took a lot of power for Milo to say the following words out loud.

With a deep sigh, Milo said:

**“I’m gay.”**

Gordie’s eyes widened to far that his sunglasses slipped a little down his nose.

Milo let go of Gordie’s shoulder and was now nervously fidgeting with his thumbs in his lap, a faraway stare on his face, looking to an imaginary horizon not seen from this green house.

He began, his voice as soft and reminiscent as a starry sky on a summer’s eve.

“I’m gay… And I somehow always knew it. I was never interested in girls, and even my classmates setting me up with dates never helped. I… only had a few boyfriends, but nothing worked out. We had to date in secret. None of them wanted to deal with the possibility of landing in the tabloids, with a big red headline reading “BREAKING NEWS - HOTTEST GOSSIP IN TOWN: LOCAL GYM LEADER MILO IS A HOMOSEXUAL AND THIS IS HIS BOYFRIEND - READ ALL ABOUT IT ON PAGE 3”. So every relationship broke off pretty quickly after maybe becoming ‘serious’… Hah… I feel like such a coward in hindsight.” A sad gravitas began to pull Milo’s tone down.

Immediately, as if on instinct, Gordie’s hand reached out to pat Milo’s shoulder as well.

_He could feel Milo breathe, his back heaving with emotion._

Milo continued, his voice a lot sadder now, riddled with past melancholia of relationships long past:

“I… I’m the most stereotypical of all gays, am I. The lone ‘country boy bachelor’? The ‘buff guy’? The ‘nature-loving shepard’? The ‘helpful guide’, the ‘one who always smiles’? It’s so cliché, it should be so obvious to everyone, and yet … Growing up gay on the countryside wasn’t easy… Really not… Rumours can spread like wildfire, words travel so fast, anything can spiral out of control so quickly, and before you know it your life has turned upside down.”

Milo sighed gravely, and Gordie patted his shoulder some more, overcome with emotion as well.

The privacy of the greenhouse was protecting them, and in this little patch of nature on a picnic blanket inmidst a bustling town, Milo and Gordie could finally open up to each other.

“You see why I haven’t told anyone yet…” whispered Milo. “But… But I feel safe telling you. Especially after you told me.”

With his big emotional eyes and a smile, Milo turned to Gordie again.

_As their looks met again, they felt a new sort of connection._

_Warmer._

_Understanding._

_More intense than ever before._

Gordie spoke, his voice raspy with emotion: “That was very courageous of you to tell me, and I really appreciate that….! I… I will be there to support you if anything happens!!! And I definitely understand wanting to keep it a secret, I myself haven’t found the courage either, man, I never even flirted openly with a guy…! But… if you are a coward, then I-I’m the biggest of all cowards!!!”

That was it, that last sentence had such an emotional sorrow-breaking impact that Milo couldn’t help but erupt into laughter.

“Ahahaha…! Thank you so much, Gordie, that is so sweet of you!!!” After a few more chuckles, Milo continued: “Hahaha! Thank you, really, that is the best reaction I could have ever wished for after hearing me come out!”

In another sudden reflex, Gordie took Milo’s hand and held it, then immediately declared: “No, really, if anything happens, I will be there for you…!! I can’t have anyone hurt someone I love!!!“

And Gordie stopped dead in his tracks, staring into Milo’s eyes.

His mouth open with bewildered astonishment at his own words.

Squeezing Milo’s hand even more, he was panicking: “I-I…!!!! I mean….!!! That came out a bit strong, I’m so sorry, I….!!!!!!”

But Milo simply nodded, and answered, gently squeezing Gordie’s hand back: “Well… You may have guessed it already… But… I have developed feelings for you, but didn’t knew if they were in vain or not… I thought that this would be a nice friendship, but…” Milo blushed, blinking a bit more, “I wasn’t really setting out with a goal to find a new partner, and I didn’t want to ruin such a beautiful friendship with hurt feelings.” He was blushing heavily now, red face under ginger hair, a face aflame with emotion, ”If you want to accept my feelings, I would gladly…. d-date you. … A-And if not, that’s fine too! I really like being your best friend…”

It all began to dawn on Gordie.

Of course.

Not only Milo had developed feelings for him.

Gordie had done so too.

The way he said “someone I love” just now had been genuine, not just a slip-up.

_Oh._

_Maybe his subconscious way of repressing his bisexual side had made him blind for such an obvious emotion_.

_Not considering it in the slightest._

_Of course._

_How had Gordie never noticed?_

_The way he himself had always been looking to Milo’s messages._

_The happiness he felt when seeing Milo in person._

_The comfort of being near him._

_The hugs he loved so much._

_Those big, warm, bear hugs._

_Being so close to a person he genuinely felt happy with._

_Feeling him under his palms._

_Looking forward to every new meeting._

_To see these bright eyes._

_To see this smile._

_To see **his** smile._

Scraping together all his courage, Gordie said, from the very soul of his beating heart, his voice equally riddled with emotion, emotion that was finally allowed to be free from the shackles of his mind:

“I… I have developed feelings for you too. … No, I’m certain. … I do.” said Gordie, his voice starting to crack with this deep realisation. He continued, blushing hard and still holding Milo’s hand: “I’m sure that I didn’t realise or… thought of it properly, but… I know. Talking and writing to you makes me… s-so happy, and… I want to be close to you. I feel good when I’m with you… As if all my worries suddenly don’t matter anymore…!!”

Gordie felt like he was falling into a nervous ramble again, but all these words and thoughts had to get out now, be spoken after lingering hidden so long in his mind: “I… You make me happy…! I admire your strength and how you lead your life, I feel like I could learn so much from you… A-And, to be honest…” he sighed, his breath trembling, “I… I want to be with you more… Being more than friends sounds… fantastic to me…! Gosh, I feel so dense for not noticing earlier…!! So… Y-Yes!! I want to date you…!!”

_There they sat on the picnic blanket, on their knees, surrounded by berries, fruits and leaves of all sizes and colours, holding hands and looking deep into each other’s eyes. Through a bumbling mess of words and emotions discovered and unearthed, evolved and grown over weeks, they had found each other. A beginning friendship that was now blossoming into a possible romance and partnership. Both hadn’t expected this to happen, Milo since he hadn’t been sure if Gordie was interested, and Gordie because he simply hadn’t realised his own emotions and the possibility of such a relationship._

_But now…_

“Would… S-Should we kiss…???” asked Gordie, now visibly sweating with nervousness in this humid greenhouse, completely out of the loop about what to do - this was all so new and exciting to him!

Milo smiled and nodded, and he repositioned his hands, now they were holding both hands, and slowly, they slid over each other…

And their fingers interlocked.

Gently brushing gloves against soft skin.

Then their palms followed, slowly.

Gordie was even more nervous, this felt so… _intimate_ to hold hands like that, sitting in front of each other…

“I would love to kiss you…” whispered Milo, his stare darting to the lawn, shyly avoiding Gordie’s eyes for a second, then he looked back, and as their eyes met again, they were more than smitten.

This softness with each other, this attraction wrapped in carefulness, this discovery of their true feelings that could become something new entirely…

With this warmth spreading in their hearts, right through their bodies, onto their fingertips, Gordie answered: “I would love as w-well…”, and began to close his eyes, still blushing strongly, carefully coming forward and tilting his head. These words made Milo’s heart melt, and he equally came forward, slowly.

They inched closer, faces coming closer, they could feel each other’s presence, and now, Milo could feel Gordie’s nervous breath against gently opened mouth, warmth caressing his skin…

_And with that, their lips met for the first time._

“ _Ah_ …” gasped Gordie as they met.

Closing his eyes fully, he took in this feeling of pure light emitting from his heart, radiating through his body, completely brushing away his nervousness…

Milo’s lips were so soft. So gentle on his.

It felt amazing. Out of this world.

They squeezed each other’s hands a bit more. Holding. Wanting. Securely and full of love.

Slowly, they began kissing, their lips meeting anew, softly, breathing gently. “ _Hah_ …” sighed Gordie again as he met Gordie again, and he answered, with a silent “ _Nah_ …” gasp of emotion.

It was incredible. They were fully taking in each other – and now, their hands opened again, together, as if on command, they knew what they wanted to do.

Carefully, their fingertips trailed over each other’s forearms, coming even closer.

More proximity. More closeness.

Their kiss continued, Milo carefully tilted his head to meet Gordie anew, his sunhat brushing Gordie’s blonde hair.

Caressing, kissing, loving, they came even more closer, palms brushing over their shoulders…

With this, they were hugging each other.

Warm hands travelling over Milo’s back, holding on, wanting - and big hands caressing Gordie’s blazer, resting between his shoulder blades, around his hip, supporting, loving.

The kiss had gotten more intense, their lips met again and again, as gentle gasps and moans filled the air around them.

“ _Ah_ …” sighed Gordie, knitting his brows with emotion, “ _Mnah_ …” answered Milo, his mouth now covering Gordie’s.

Their hug got tighter, fingertips pressing against their backs. Their Gym leader clothes rustled as they met chest to chest. Gordie moaned “ _Nnah_ …” as he felt Milo’s big pecs meet his own chest, they were… so soft. So big. So friendly. Supportive.

Their lips met again, parting to re-join, over and over, meeting with care and adoration, their breaths colliding, wanting to feel the other.

_Even if they weren’t kissing with tongues, only their lips and bodies meeting… this was intense._

_Way more intense than they had anticipated._

_“M-Mi… lo… Hah…”_ moaned Gordie into Milo’s lips, his hands caressing his back. “ _Mnh_ …” answered Milo, squeezing Gordie a bit closer to his chest.

How big Milo’s arms felt around him…

How loving his lips were…

How… intimate his voice was…

It felt so good.

So fulfilling, so kind.

Their kisses were covering and meeting with warmth, but they could both feel a little shyness, to not go all out.

To feel. To be close.

To understand the other first.

And it felt wonderful to be finally understood.

“ _Hah_ …” gasped Gordie, and parted slowly from Milo, their faces close to each other, noses nearly touching.

Looking into Milo’s eyes, Gordie was fascinated by his look: These friendly eyes that were normally shining with joy and enthusiasm, were suddenly filled with… a caring softness, with a small flame of passion, looking back at him with half-closed eyelids.

In this silence, they could only hear each other’s faint panting.

Entranced by this new facial expression Gordie had never seen, he caught himself and whispered, slightly out of breath:

“That was amazing… Hah… You’re amazing, Milo…” his voice was husky from breathing through his mouth, overflowing with emotion.

“You too, Gordie…” smiled Milo, and a spark of joy returned to his eyes – and with a big grin, he hugged Gordie tight, a massive bear hug his face went past Gordie’s, meeting cheek to cheek.

“…!” Gordie was surprised by this additional hug, but answered it, carefully nuzzling Milo’s cheek back.

Milo’s sunhat fell off and landed softly on the lawn.

They remained in this warm hug for a while longer.

Feeling each other’s breath, presence, and warmth.

_There they were, the two Gym leaders of Galar, who could not be more different, a country boy and a family heir, Grass and Rock – hugging in a greenhouse in a small rural town, away from the eyes of the public, social media and all other watchful eyes. Just the two, connecting, finding each other, exploring and accepting their relationship… with their first kiss amidst flowers._

_In the greenhouse – the secret in plain sight._

~ ~ ~

The setting sun bathed all of Turffield in a comforting orange light.

With a small click, Milo closed the greenhouse again with his little green key, and Gordie held the picnic basket for him.

While they couldn’t hold hands here on the outside, the pure knowledge that they would be together now was enough to make the two radiate with joy. A big grin on both of their faces, they walked back to the Gym plaza, where the Corviknight cab already waited for Gordie.

As they walked over the sandy path together, they couldn’t help but be very giddy at their newly found connection and relationship. Their first kiss… It added a little bounce to their steps, grinning and snickering along the way.

Gordie leaned over and said: “Say, I visited you twice now here, how about you come over to Circhester next weekend, when we both have our vacation days again? I can show you the town, the sights and we can go to the hot springs!”

Milo beamed with joy at that idea, and answered: “I would love that, I have never been to Circhester! I’ll bring my swimming trunks too then!”

As he said that, they both noticed: They were dating now, pretty much boyfriends already. This would be the first time they would see each other’s bodies without any clothes - only swimwear.

They both blushed, then they both burst out into laughing.

Gordie pushed up his sunglasses with cool swing of his hand and said in a snide tone: “Hahahaha! And I’ll make sure to wear my best swimming trunks for you, Milo, maybe even the Hammerlocke designer trunks!” and winked at Milo.

He promptly blushed even more in return, and waved off the sentence, then giggled: “Shhh, we’re in public, Gordie…!” (There was absolutely no one around them, the shops had already closed, and everyone was home for dinner with their loved ones, only a few people were visible in town anymore.) “But I would love to see those trunks!” added Milo quickly, grinning widely.

As they reached the cab, Gordie put down the basket, and faced Milo again.

“So, this is goodbye for today again, but we will write each other, right?” and patted his phone peeking out his trousers.

“Absolutely!” exclaimed Milo, and they met for another big hug again.

It felt warm and comfortable again, to be so close to each other, and with that new feeling of togetherness and attraction, it made the two emotional.

“ _I’m so glad I met you…_ ” whispered Milo into Gordie’s ear as he snuggled up to him, and Gordie answered, gently under his breath, " _Me too…_ ”

They parted again, their hands resting on each other’s shoulders, looking into each other’s eyes.

While they couldn’t kiss in public yet, their faces expressed all they needed to know.

Happy smiles in the warm evening sun.

_As Gordie’s cab flew away, they waved to each other until they couldn’t see each other anymore. The big Corviknight soared over the clouds, towards dusk, the deep orange sun setting beyond the horizon._

_The future looked bright for Milo and Gordie._

_But little did they know that this would just be the first step on a long way ahead of them. They didn’t know where that path would lead, and what challenges they would face, but they knew one thing already:_

_That they would walk this path together, side by side._

**TO BE CONTINUED**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you very much for reading! Please leave a kudos or a comment, I'm so glad to get all your feedbacks and thoughts!
> 
> I continue to write this fic, of course, and if you want more inbetween updates, feel free to follow or visit me on <https://twitter.com/LewdPointyNoses> or send me questions on curiouscat, <https://curiouscat.qa/LewdPointyNoses>!
> 
> Your continued support and kind words fuel my heart and brighten my day, thank you, and have a lovely time! 💖💖💖


	5. After Work

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a long day of work, Gordie sat down to think about his new situation with Milo.
> 
> Saturday was just around the corner, Milo would visit him in Circhester, what would happen?
> 
> But new things were looming on the horizon...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note:
> 
> I needed a last name for Gordie and Melony, to talk about their family, so I combined Gordie's canon Spanish and German names ("Mac" and "Morris") to "McMorris", which I found fitting, since they live in North Galar, the equivalent of Scotland in the UK, just like Milo lives in the equivalent of Wales.

The following days, Gordie was on cloud nine.

After his last visit in Turffield, he was walking with a bounce in his step ever so slightly.

Full of fresh new energy and love flickering in his heart, like a tiny flame of ignited romance that would warm him wherever he went.

_Gordie had kissed Milo._

Wow.

That was still so unimaginable to him, his first kiss with a man.

As if the chains of insecurity had burst around his heart, Gordie was excited and full of enthusiasm to continue seeing and dating Milo.

Gordie stepped up to his apartment door and opened it. A long day of Gym leader work was over, he could finally relax and look at his phone properly, to see if any new messages had arrived.

Taking his shoes off and flinging his blazer on a nearby chair, Gordie let himself fall on his big double bed, still in Gym shorts and shirt, gloved hand ready on his phone.

After a few swipes, his eyes widened, and his heart swelled: A message and a photo from Milo.

It read:

“Hey Gordie! I miss you and I can’t wait to see you this Saturday in Circhester! Choosing my outfit already!” Gordie smiled, he really felt the same way. He tapped the message to open the photo: an image of Milo having laid out his clothes on his bed: a warm shirt, some long cord pants, a light coat, and… some green speedos?

Gordie’s eyes widened.

Speedos?

They were branded in Milo’s Gym colours, white with a green symbol of a leaf on it on the side. Green rims on bright white fabric.

…

Gordie blushed.

Would Milo wear these on their next meeting? No, next _date?_

They were indeed dating now, in plain sight, but without anyone knowing.

And Milo would appear in front of him, in the hot springs, with no shirt, no pants, no nothing, except… these speedos?

Gordie blushed harder.

“Oh my…” he stuttered to himself, feeling his own hands be a bit too sweaty on his phone.

Gordie hadn’t even thought about what he would wear to this date, not to mention what they would do in the hot springs.

Things hadn’t changed that much, hadn’t they? Was it different now that they were dating? He had thought of Milo as a good mate and friend before that, but now, he was maybe becoming… his boyfriend…?

Gordie clasped his mouth. The feeling was sinking in, but it was a new, unknown feeling, one that made his heart race and his mind spin: They were on their first steps to get closer now, as more than just friends. Milo was making an effort for him, wanted to make him happy and be comfortable around him, and that filled Gordie’s heart with a mix of pride and excitement.

He began typing: “I love your outfit, and your speedos look good too ;)“-

Gordie stopped. Was that too much now? He normally was quite forward in his relationships, especially flirting, but this was… Milo. The one Milo he had gotten to know better. The Milo who had opened up to him and who was interested in dating him.

_The Milo he had kissed._

…

“Aaaah, why is this so complicated…??” sighed Gordie and put his phone down in his lap.

Flirting came so naturally to him, always, with many fangirls and journalists always orbiting around him wherever he went. Flirting with a camera was easy too, showing off skills and giving a smirk while pushing his sunglasses up. Been there, done that, a hundred or thousand times. No problem.

But now he was struggling to compliment Milo’s speedo? A simple speedo? Seriously?

Gordie rolled over on his bed, now lying on his stomach, phone falling off his leg to the linen.

“Aaaaaah…!” he sighed more frustratingly.

He noticed again how much experience he was lacking. Flirting with women, easy as pie. Flirting with Milo, his newly gained love and possible boyfriend, his supportive workmate and friend in need?

No, no, no, this was way more difficult. This was new. He had never done this.

…

There is a first time for anything, isn’t there? Gordie suddenly thought.

He couldn’t roll around here and do nothing. He had to compliment Milo! He was looking forward to this date and wanted to see him. Have Milo around him. They would see each other next Saturday.

Gordie picked up his phone again and began typing anew: “I love the outfit and I can’t wait to see you, I miss you too! And these will look great on you!” and hit _Send._

There.

He sighed loudly out of relief.

One step at a time, don’t rush this, Gordie, he spoke to himself in his heart.

This message contained his true feelings and was exactly what he wanted to write.

PLING!

Milo had already answered, that was fast! Gordie looked at his phone with raised eyebrows, and saw:

“Thank you!” accompanied by a happy jumping Wooloo emoji.

And a _heart emoji._

That made Gordie smile.

So, everything was fine, and they both were looking forward to seeing each other.

Everything was fine, and a-ok.

…

…

…

Gordie jumped out from his relaxed position on his bed, clutching his phone and staring into the void.

_There was still an uncertainty he couldn’t shake._

“He will see me in swim wear too…!!!” whispered Gordie, now fully blushing, his cheeks radiating gentle heat from all this emotional excitement.

He hadn’t even thought about that at all. He had just planned on wearing his beige-white Gym boxer shorts to the hot springs, like always. It was his favourite past-time, and he hadn’t considered that it would maybe different as a 'dating spot'.

_Milo would see him half-naked. Without anything to cover up himself._

Gordie’s hands went through his hair, ruffling it, mumbling under his breath: “Oh noooooo…!!”

The night had already settled outside, and his big glass windows overlooking Circhester showed him his own reflection again:

In the darkness, speckled with a few falling snowflakes, he could see himself: Chubby. Overweight. With the love handles he just couldn’t get rid of, no matter how much he worked out or tried dieting.

“Tchh.” Gordie scoffed, got up, walked to the window and closed his curtains to not see his own dark reflection.

His hand lingered on the heavy curtains for a while.

Milo wouldn’t mind, surely…? He was such a strong man, carrying haystacks and sheep like no one else, with these big muscles and this big chest under that tight Gym leader shirt. The natural country boy, the always-smiling and strong one. It wasn’t like him to judge Gordie for his body. He had never made a comment or a remark, always supportive…

Gordie’s hand slid off the curtains and over his own belly. “Hm…” wondered Gordie. He had wanted to talk to Milo already about his own body image, but last time, different and more important things happened, hadn’t talked about that at all.

He looked up at the ceiling, and then, clenched his fist.

This would be the perfect time to ask for advice or support. No need to be scared. Milo would surely listen and help him, Gordie nodded to himself.

With determined strides, Gordie walked back to his own bed and rolled himself back on it again.

Lying on his back, all fours stretched out, Gordie was a little nervous, but confident.

The date on Saturday would go well. He would be able to show his him own beloved hometown, go to the hot springs, and then go eat at the Steak House, that should make for a comfortable and nice day with Milo.

As he let this planned out day pass before his inner eye, his thoughts came to a halt when he thought about the hot springs again, as a single word floated into his mind:

Speedos.

Gordie blushed anew.

They were indeed some... _stylish_ swim briefs. And he couldn’t help himself imagining Milo in them.

Milo’s trained body must surely look well in them, right?

Already with clothes on, Gordie had been in awe of Milo’s muscles, just not fully consciously yet. And now that they had gotten closer…

His big arms, his full chest, those friendly round pecs… So huge that he could probably rest his head on those…

Those muscular legs, those big thighs, and well-shaped calves…

And there…

Milo would wear that tight swimming outfit, that white little rim caressing his hips as it sat there, the green-coloured fabric with the leaf on his side, stretching over his c-

Gordie covered his burning red face with both hands, and rocked from left to right, muttering: _“No, no, no, no, I can’t think about Milo like that, that’s rude to imagine someone in swimwear…!!!_ ”

A hot mess of emotions was growing in his heart: politeness fighting his imagination, excitement and eroticism fighting his good manners. Over it all, draped like a veil of fine feelings – his very first love with a man: so fragile and new that he didn’t dare touch it or think about it too hard, in fear it could rip and tear by a single mistake or misstep.

But…

It would become reality soon to see him in swimwear, and Milo was dating Gordie. They liked each other. They had kissed already. And were they boyfriends already or not…? They were on the best way for sure, and so far, nothing bad had happened. Of course, it was all in secret, but… It should be alright, shouldn’t it?

It was such a comforting thought, to see Milo in front of him. He was so strong, so warm and friendly, yet vulnerable too… And being close to him was so wonderful. Holding hands had felt so… real and graspable, and his lips…

His soft lips on Gordie’s… How sweet and gentle he had been…

When would the next steps follow…? From warm hugs and kisses to… something else?

Gordie’s thoughts continued, how would Milo’s touches be, to feel his big warm hands on his body… To caress… To touch… To run his hands over his curves, over his hips, to…

Would their kisses become more intense too? Their first one had been so sweet and caring, what would the next one be…? Would it be more… m-more…?

… Intimate?

Gordie looked through the fingers of his hands covering his face.

Slowly, he took down one hand and let it downwards, towards his own shorts, the grey and black gym outfit pants he was still wearing.

As his own palm slid down his body, his other sweaty hand resting on his cheek, panting gently, he suddenly-

“A-Ah…!” Gordie gently moaned.

His hand had reached his crotch. His intuition had been correct. The thoughts that had stormed his mind and his heart, they had true and honest effects on him.

**Gordie was hard.**

“H-Hah…” Gordie sighed quietly, in sheer astonishment of his own reaction.

The pure thought of Milo was exciting him, but not the lewd or carnal ones, no, it was the romantic and emotional side of it, it was turning him on, making his heart beat faster, and made him… horny.

He blinked a few times.

That was a wholly new feeling.

With his head and his heart brimming in warmth, Gordie let his hand run slowly over his erection.

It felt good. Amazing even. His gloved hand brushing the fabric, feeling his own hardness beneath.

“ _Mmnnnh…_ ” Gordie moaned, his lips slowly parting and closed his eyes.

Milo was a warm, passionate and friendly…

His pecs… His arms… Getting held, getting touched…

Gordie had rarely been the bottom in his previous relationships, nearly always the caring and passionate top, the cool Gym leader many wanted to date, but now…

It felt so good to be able to let himself fall…

Knowing that Milo was now by his side…

Catching him, holding him, loving him, kissing him…

“ _Mnah…_ ” Gordie moaned a bit louder, knitting his eyebrows in rising passion.

It felt good.

It felt so good.

He wanted to see Milo again.

Speak to him.

Laugh with him.

Kiss him.

Touch him.

Milo kissing him back.

Touching Gordie, over and over.

Feeling him under his hands.

These large and strong hands holding Gordie.

He wanted it.

He wanted it so much.

He began to crave something he had been missing all his life.

Milo…

His body…

So big… so friendly… he must feel amazing…

What…

What would…

What would his… his c-cock be like…?

 _“Hah…!”_ moaned Gordie anew as he touched himself stronger, grabbing his own shaft through his pants, his clothes rustled in the quiet intimacy of this moment, he ran his other hand through his hair, he was breathing heavier already, it felt so good, so amazing, he couldn’t even imagine all of it clearly, but the pure thoughts alone were turning him on, making his heart beat faster, a drip of sweat ran down his forehead, he should touch himself, he slowly opened his fly, the zipper careful between his fingers, he moaned again as he felt how his now even bigger erection finally got space, and-

**_RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNNNG_ **

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!” screamed Gordie, completely ripped out of his fantasy.

Who was calling him now? Was it Milo??

He snatched his phone, wide open eyes focusing on the illuminated screen, and saw..

_The big letters “MUM - CALLING” shining on the display._

It was Melony, the Gym leader of Circhester he shared a Gym with every alternate week.

His mum.

**Oh, Lord Arceus in heaven, no.**

As quickly as Gordie’s erection had risen for Milo, it was completely gone now.

He had gone soft within seconds.

How dare reality disturbed his imagination.

“ _Tch…_ ” he scoffed, very much annoyed.

Parents had the uncanny ability to disturb in the worst possible situations.

No exception.

And getting older hadn’t changed that fact at all.

In fact, it felt like his mother’s ability to call in the most unfitting situations had become even worse during the last few years.

The phone continued ringing and buzzing in his hand.

“What does she even want…?” mumbled Gordie to himself, visibly upset.

He really didn’t need this emotional whiplash right now. She surely wanted something again, he was sure of it. Or try to gossip and talk about unimportant things. Or even worse, try to talk with him about family matters.

His mood had been completely killed.

With an angry sigh, he sat upright, unlocked the phone and accepted the call.

“Yes, what?” he said gruffly, rubbing his forehead with his other hand. 

“Is that a way to greet your mother? Haha!” came the way-too-loud laughter of his mother Melony through the speaker.

“Yeah, sorry, mum.” Gordie quickly responded. After a beat, he said: “What’s going on, why do you call?”

“Do I have a reason to call my beloved son? I just wanted to hear you, is all! Haha!” came the bright voice of Melony back.

Great. Fantastic. The best of all calls, honestly.

Gordie hated those.

Why would she bother him if nothing was up?

Sometimes he suspected that older people simply didn’t understand that a text was enough, why did they always call people out of the blue?

“I’m fine, mum. You don’t need to worry about me.”

“You know me, I always worry about my oldest child, you are the one with the proper job, and all your siblings are still in school or in college!”

That old topic again. Different day, but same old, same old.

“Yeah, yeah, I know. Still, everything is well over here. I'm fine.” mumbled Gordie back. “The Gym is yours again next week, all the preparations have been taken, and the numbers are great too.”

“That is great to hear, Gordie, my dear!” Melody had this sugary tone again that Gordie really didn’t like. Like fine snow on a cold Sunday morning, that is too slippery and easily underestimated, it was suspicious and most likely hiding something.

“Say, I wanted for you to come home next week on Sunday, would that be alright with you?” spoke Melody in a really innocent and inviting tone.

Ah.

There it was.

The real reason she called.

An invitation to their home. The place where Gordie had spent most of his childhood. A mansion, high in the cold North of Galar, hidden between dense forests and icy winded paths:

The McMorris house.

The family mansion. A statement piece with many corridors and rooms - a relic of time long gone, when lords and ladies needed weekend getaways to go hunt and throw lavish parties.

While it had been a great place to grow up in, many rooms and lot of place to play in with all of his siblings, with a big garden and surrounding trees… it now felt oppressive.

Like carrying the weight of family heritage everywhere.

Full of statues, carpets and curtains that only gathered dust with passing years. Even if dusted off, they still felt old-fashioned and cold.

And he, Gordie McMorris, would inherit it one day, together with everything else he didn’t want, and had actively run away from in his college days until today.

“… Is anything the matter?” asked Gordie, rising an eyebrow. It felt suspicious that his mum wanted to invite him back home. Gordie lived in his fancy flat on top of the Circhester Gym now, the more distance he had towards his own family, the better.

“I just wanted to talk to you, is all!” responded his mum, a bit too fast for his own taste. But it was worthless to start a discussion now, especially via phone. His mum could be a frightful ice queen if she wanted to, and he most certainly didn’t need that right now.

“Yeah, fine, I’ll come over. Next Sunday, as usual, 4 pm for afternoon tea?” said Gordie, he could feel it in his bones that this was an “afternoon tea” occasion. It meant that it was 'something important', but still 'light enough to get talked over tea'. If it had been a lunch, or even worse, a full dinner with all family members, then something was up. Or it was New Year's eve, and everyone had to come home.

“Wonderful, love you my son, and have an amazing evening, my dear!!” answered Melony in a singsong, and Gordie could only mumble back: “Love you too, see you then, mum.”

And with a press of the button, she was gone.

Gordie fell back onto his bed.

Oh man.

That had killed his mood in a big way.

This was certainly his mum’s roundabout way of saying “We need to talk.”, he knew it. A sentence that Gordie really didn’t appreciate in his life right now. Everything was going well right now in his Gym business, and he was dating Milo. He really didn’t need any additional family drama to take care of.

Gordie sighed.

He should probably focus on Milo, that was important right now. He was looking forward to seeing Milo so much. He wanted the date to go well on Saturday-

Saturday.

And his meeting with his mum was a day later, on Sunday.

Gordie groaned louder.

What a whiplash of days. The highlight and the lowlight of his week, all on one weekend.

And he would see Milo before his trip to McMorris mansion, so he couldn’t even let his joy for his date carry him through his dreaded day with his mum.

He had to focus on making Saturday an amazing day for Milo and himself, and not think too much about Sunday afterwards.

Clutching his phone stronger, Gordie was determined.

That was his new plan for now.

Milo was making him happy and he wanted to see Milo happy too. With everything included: maybe a little city sightseeing, steak house dinner, and hot spring, be happy and together.

“I’m not letting this day get ruined by my family…” he whispered to himself.

He swiped a few times on his phone and looked at his chat conversation with Milo again.

The little Wooloo emoji was still jumping in Milo’s last “Thank you!” message.

The heart emoji at the end of the sentence was still there.

It made Gordie smile.

It would go well. For certain.

_An eventful weekend was on the horizon._

_The snow continued to fall outside. Little dancing flakes in the evening wind, floating in the night sky._

_The Circhester Gym was illuminated in a warm light._

_A small oasis in the cold climate that surrounded everything._

**_TO BE CONTINUED_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! A shorter update before the "Saturday" and "Sunday" chapters, which will be a lot longer. I'm still writing this fic, no worries, and I'm so glad for your continued support and lovely messages, they really fuel me and make me so happy! 💖💖💖
> 
> In the meantime, you can visit me on Twitter under @LewdPointyNoses [(https://twitter.com/LewdPointyNoses)](https://twitter.com/LewdPointyNoses) for updates, send me questions on [curiouscat.qa/LewdPointyNoses](https://curiouscat.qa/LewdPointyNoses) or write me on Discord, Lepon#2891!


	6. Hot Springs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Milo arrived at Circhester, following Gordie's invitation. What emotional and steamy adventure would happen on this day?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note:
> 
> \- Galarian bath houses are a mix of Japanese hot springs and Finnish sauna culture, given that the game is developped in Japan and features a EU/UK setting, so I found it to be very fitting for the story.
> 
> \- Milo's last name for this story is "Davies". I chose this name for two reasons: Milo is from West Galar, the equivalent of Wales, so he needed a friendly Welsh name that fit him. In addition, it's a common name, pointing at his humble and down-to-earth background.
> 
>  **ADDITIONAL CONTENT TAGS:** fatphobia mention, body positivity, emotional talks, supportive partners, horny NSFW times

Gordie looked at his watch.

“Hm...” he wondered; Milo was already a bit late. But this was kind of expected, air cabs often took a bit longer to arrive at Circhester, due to heavy winds and unexpected snow.

He sighed.

But this little delay could not disrupt his happy heart beating warmly in his chest, snug under his big beige trench coat and white scarf. He shouldered his big sports bag anew.

Since last time, when they had met and kissed in the greenhouse at Turffield, Gordie’s feelings for Milo had only gotten stronger and their messages even more. Daily sweet little messages flew between their phones, checking in on the other, wishing a good day or good night. Some day-to-day photos, the occasional selfie, and more updates from their Pokémon.

Yesterday, Wooloo was happily playing with Gordie’s Rolycoly, both darting joyfully around in the snow and leaving tracks and hoof prints respectively, while Milo’s two precious dogs had finally gotten the hang of herding sheep. “They should evolve soon!” had Milo written, “They will run a lot faster once they do, it will be less exhausting for them then, I’m sure!” followed by a photo of the two dogs totally spent and fast asleep in their cute little baskets.

Gordie smiled as he thought about all these great memories, and then looked at his watch again. His warm breath turned to smoke in the cold air as he looked up again.

“I hope he didn’t get lost...” he mumbled. The fog and clouds were sometimes so thick that cabs got lost and ended up somewhere else, or arrived with quite some delay if the person flying was unfamiliar about the region and weather.

But suddenly, he finally saw it: A big black Corviknight broke through the clouds above and began to soar towards Circhester.

Gordie’s face lit up: It was Milo.

For certain.

He could see the South-West Galar license plate. And that also explained why he was a little late – the cab driver was indeed not from around here and most likely struggling with the Northern weather.

With a big gesture, Gordie swung his white scarf around his neck again, and strutted through the thin snow towards the big round stone plaza of Circhester, where the cab was about to land.

~ ~ ~

The big wing flaps of the Corviknight stirred up the snow, flying up in cold flakes that whirled around. Gordie had to shield his face a little, his blue sunglasses thankfully protecting his eyes completely.

And with a low rumble, the cab landed on the ground - next to the big “Hotel Ionia” doorsteps.

The door opened as Gordie approached, and out came: A very cold Milo, wearing a big sweater and a big yellow raincoat on top, a sports bag on one shoulder, with long black cotton pants that seemed way too thin. What he had invested in upper body protection, he was certainly missing below. And those shoes most certainly did not look warm enough.

Gordie grinned and opened is arms, then hugged Milo, who was already trembling.

“S-Sorry for being late, but… hrrrr… we got lost in all these heavy clouds and w-winds…” mumbled Milo into Gordie’s ear, and hugged slowly back, his movements slow as if he was frozen through and through. “N-Nice to see you… G-Gordie…!” Milo trembled further, and Gordie patted him gently on the back.

“Lovely to see you too, Milo!” he answered, and let go of the hug to show surrounding Circhester with a big gesture. A few curious citizens had amassed, some taking photos for their social media posts, having another gym leader arrive in their town was not a daily occurrence.

“This is my beautiful hometown, Circhester!” said Gordie with a big smile and a big gesture. “Over here, the main plaza and hotel, up there, the Bath of Legend. The street on the left leads to the restaurant ‘Bob’s Your Uncle’, and the one on the right to the fashion store and the hot springs.” He pointed further away, towards the north of the town, “And up there, at the top, is the Circhester Gym, with my flat on the upper level where I live!”

Milo was looking attentively at everything Gordie pointed, but didn’t say much – he was trembling quite a lot. As Gordie looked back at him, he could only smile and say: “I originally wanted to give you a tour first, but you look like you could need the hot springs immediately.” And chuckled a little, patting Milo’s back.

“Y-Yes… I w-w-would prefer that…!” answered Milo, trying to answer the smile, but his knitted brows and chattering teeth prevented him from doing so. He rubbed his own arms, his big hands going over his biceps, gently walking in place to keep himself warm.

“Then let’s go!” grinned Gordie and led Milo to follow him. “We should buy you a winter coat one day as well, raincoats are not enough for this climate!” Milo snickered back: “It was the only warm coat I had!”

The people around them made way, some of them waved at them, snapping photos, and both waved back, professionally as gym leaders do.

“The Bath House is not that far away.” explained Gordie. “There is the Bath of Legend, of course, in the centre of the city, but that’s mostly a tourist attraction or for Pokémon to jump into. The hot springs I want to visit with you are in North Circhester, behind the Gym, in a cosy building with many different pools and baths to enjoy!”

They continued walking. Milo was still trembling, but a big smile began to form on his face. He then giggled too himself, happy about something. Gordie tilted his head, and asked: “What’s up? Is anything wrong?”

“No, no!” waved Milo off, and pointed at Gordie’s neck, “You are wearing the scarf I gave you way back at the Championship! I would recognise that white Wooloo wool anywhere!”

“Oh…!” gasped Gordie and touched his scarf. It really had been a memento from their first “proper” meeting, the first time they had seen each other as equals, more than just “occasional workmates” at the Gym League.

Gordie blushed a little. “Yes… It always keeps me warm these days… And it reminds me of you…!” he wanted to continue, but then saw the surrounding people with their phones and autograph cards in hands.

He maybe should not talk that openly about liking Milo outside, and in his own hometown even less so. Rumours spread quickly, and he most certainly did not want to deal with any money-hungry gossip paper or scoop-searching website breaking his boundaries. Or their boundaries. Milo was here with him.

“It was a lovely gift from you, thank you.” Gordie ended his thought and looked forward again.

Milo noticed the shift in his mannerisms, and looked forward again, to not arise suspicion.

They were just two workmates, two celebrities hanging out, nothing more.

Behind doors, in the hot springs, they would be able to talk freely again.

Their footsteps crunched gently in the thin snow on cold stone, side by side.

~ ~ ~

After a few minutes, they arrived at Circhester Bath. A big building with a large snowy garden area behind it, surrounded by many trees. Here, in the bordering area of the forest and a bit further away from the city centre, it was snugly hidden away from prying eyes and cameras.

The Bath House was a large, traditional building with a black tile roof, covered in snow, but with many stone-built chimneys on top. The red brick walls gave it a certain nostalgic charm, as if it had been standing here already for centuries. The big door had an inviting feeling as well, and as Milo went up the small flight of stairs, Gordie held the door open for him.

“Whoa…” gasped Milo.

This bath was as luxurious as the fabled Ionia Hotel in Circhester, maybe even more elaborate. Behind these unsuspecting old house walls was a marble hall, with black and white stone, a big front desk reception, and many doors that lead to other steaming places. The air was warm and humid, a welcome change compared to the crispy cold outside weather.

They walked towards the reception, Milo looking around, taking in the magnificent interior.

“Good afternoon, Mr. McMorris!” said the receptionist lady in a friendly tone, bowing before the two.

“Good afternoon! Two all-day VIP passes, all-access indoor/outdoor, for me and my friend, Mister… uh…” Gordie answered, and looked a bit confused over to Milo.

“Oh!” gasped Milo, then immediately answered, “It’s Davies! Milo Davies!” smiled Milo shyly. “It’s so uncommon to be referred to by my family name, haha!”

“Mr McMorris and Mr Davies, welcome to Circhester Bath.” nodded the receptionist and handed them two plastic cards with a chimney emblem on it.

“The VIP changing rooms are to your right, as usual, if you require a tour, we will-“ continued the lady, but Gordie gave a friendly wave and said: “I’ll take care of my dear guest, I will show him the around. The bill goes to Circhester Gym Inc, like always.” And placed his hand on Milo’s large shoulder.

“Very well, gentlemen. We wish you a pleasant stay!” smiled the lady behind the counter, and they both thanked to make their way towards the changing rooms.

“Davies, huh?” smiled Gordie, glancing towards Milo, “I never knew your family name, it suits you!”

“Hehe, thank you!” blushed Milo slightly, and answered, “McMorris sounds so regal, I feel like I’m invited somewhere fancy!”

Milo’s face turned a bit more sombre, than responded: “… It definitely is a fancy name, used to be Northern country aristocracy. But we don’t have lords and dames anymore, those times are long gone, centuries ago, thankfully.” sighed Gordie. “Never liked those titles of grandeur. We still have McMorris mansion, where I have to visit my mum tomorrow, but… _hah_ …” he rubbed his temples, “The less I talk about that, the better.”

“Oh, sorry!” gasped Milo, “If it’s a touchy subject, then I won’t talk about it anymore!”

“No, no, it’s not ‘touchy’ per se, but more… bothersome overall.”

“Ah…” remarked Milo, not wanting to stir anything anymore.

Gordie however straightened his back, stood a bit taller, and proclaimed: “But enough about that, it’s time for us to have a nice day!”

“Yes!” nodded Milo and grinned from ear to ear.

_That grin could melt all the snow in Circhester with its warm brightness, thought Gordie, and smiled._

~ ~ ~

They had reached the small but luxurious locker rooms. Marble floor with big metal lockers, and wooden benches between them.

A few of the lockers were already taken, so some people were already inside.

“There are your regular baths, like swimming pools, that take their water from underground hot springs. We have big public ones, and some smaller private ones, like hot tubs. There is also a sauna up ahead, and an outside area for the really tough bunch.” explained Gordie, putting down his sports bag and opening one of the lockers.

Milo picked a locker on the opposite side, and looked at Gordie with big eyes: “You have an outside area?? I thought Circhester had permafrost, like snow and winter all around the clock, all-year!”

“Haha!” chuckled Gordie, happy to explain, “That is true, but that’s also the appeal of it all! Being in the hot water while it’s cold outside is a great feeling! The contrast in temperatures really makes you appreciate all the warmth. Ever had snowflakes fall on your head while you are inside natural hot spring water? The best feeling ever!”

Milo was shuddering at the thought alone. “Brrrr! … I still want to try though, but I’m not sure if I can take it. I’m so accustomed to the late spring weather of Turffield, we rarely have snow at all!” He took off his jacket and put it in the locker. Gordie in the meantime sat down on one of the benches, to take off his shoes.

“But that’s not all!” grinned Gordie, looking down, “I think the best feeling is going from the sauna right into the snow! It’s such a steep drop in temperatures, but it builds up your immune system! You go from a hot steamy room right outside and roll in the snow! Haha, isn’t that an amazing concept-“

Gordie looked up to see the possibly amazed or shocked face of Milo, but was met with a different image instead:

Milo had just taken off his shirt.

And was standing there topless.

“That sounds so cold!!!” smiled Milo, blushing and rubbing his arms at the thought alone.

_How large his chest was, thought Gordie._

_And his big friendly hands running over his own big biceps looked so endearing._

“Uuuuh, yes! T-That’s the point, being warm and then cold!” stammered Gordie slightly, looking to the side, hopefully he wasn’t staring too hard. He got up and began to take off his own jacket and shirt.

And yet, he was immediately reminded of his own chubbiness as he looked down himself.

Calm down, Gordie, he thought, everything will be fine.

As he pulled his t-shirt over his head, he sighed.

He put the shirt into his locker, now equally topless, but in his own eyes… not as appealing by a large margin.

“Say, Milo, how do you deal with-“ and turned around to address him.

To his surprise, Milo was staring at him, blushing red as summer’s apple, and immediately glanced away once their eyes met for a split second. “Y-Yes, Milo, deal with what…?” he answered with a certain shyness in his voice.

Gordie was flabbergasted.

_… Was Milo checking him out too?_

They both blushed.

“Uh… nothing, I can ask you later…!” concluded Gordie, and turned back to his locker to take out his swimming trunks out of his sports bag.

… Could he undress in front of Milo just like that? Was it alright to do that? Hopefully, he wouldn’t make him uncomfortable… Was Milo changing right this moment as well??? But Milo had just looked at him topless as well… S-Should he turn around…?

…

Gordie decided to just finish changing quickly, and not think about it too much.

Facing his locker, not looking at Milo, he went through the whole change:

_Pants off, underpants off, wobble on one leg, swimming trunks on, done._

“ _Phew… There, that wasn’t so difficult_.” he mumbled inaudibly to himself, then finally turned around to look at Milo again.

“I’m ready!” Gordie proclaimed with a jolly smile, still slightly blushing – but what he saw took his breath away:

Milo, in his speedo.

The one he had only seen in a photo, pearl white with a green leaf on the side, and a neat green rim.

But seeing said piece of clothing on Milo looked stunning.

He could see all of Milo’s muscles, his well-defined legs and faint ginger leg hair, which in combination with his big torso looked so… well-proportioned and amazing. The big pecs, the strong arms, but most of all…

His eyes wondered down…

**That speedo.**

It was smaller than expected, but that made it even more enticing.

The white with green contrasted well against his light peach tanned skin and held all the contents well.

The content being… a really nice package.

While size definitely wasn’t everything in life, that was… immensely good to look at.

“ _So, he’s a shower, not a grower, huh_ ” shot immediately through his brain, but he shook these lewd thoughts off, that was not the time now for these things to take over. This was supposed to be a nice afternoon between him and his new … partner? Boyfriend? Pal?

…

_His Milo._

_There._

At this point, while all these facts and revelations went through his mind, Gordie noticed that he had been staring at Milo’s crotch the whole time.

Milo was blushing even stronger and shyly waved his hand. “Uh, Gordie…?”

“Oh, oh, oh, sorry!!!” Gordie snapped out of his crotch-induced trance, and blurted out, “Your speedos… l-look very good on you!!! Good c-colour!! And the leaf on the side too!!!”

Milo looked down and nodded: “Y-Yeah, new merch for my shop, I thought I could wear them in public for once… and show them to you…”

The leaf on the right side, just under his hip, added a nice dash of colour. It was printed at an angle as well, so it gave everything a nice touch of coy cheekiness. Not too little, not too much.

“I… I’m only wearing my swimming trunks, they are not as fashionable as yours, but… t-they have pockets!” Gordie added, fidgeting a little in hope to shake the awkwardness of it all off, “That means I can take your locker card with me, no need to bring it to the reception!” He pulled out the inner white pockets of his grey, beige and black patterend trunks, equally in his gym leader colours.

“Let’s close the lockers and finally go to the baths, I’m sure you will enjoy them!!” said Gordie and threw all the rest of this clothes into the locker, bag and shoes flying in, shirt and pants on top, jacket crumpled in, there, done.

“Ready to go?” he asked, card in hand, stuffing it into his pocket, but as he did… he noticed that Milo was still looking at him.

“Gordie…” sighed Milo, and there was a distinct nervousness in his voice. He glanced to the side, looking if no one else was there. “I… You may have noticed that I never show myself in public in less than a shirt. I always wear something on my upper body, and… if there is a photo shoot, on rare occasions, I always show my front. There… is a reason for that.”

“…?” Gordie was astonished, he had never seen Milo like that. He listened attentively, looking at Milo standing there, who was grabbing his own wrist and tilting his head, unsure of his appearance.

“I think you haven’t noticed yet, but I might as well show you before you notice it yourself, it’s… it’s nothing bad, just… you know…”

And Milo closed his eyes to turn around.

The first thing Gordie noticed was that Milo had an exceptionally nice and round butt in these speedos, but that was most likely not what he was talking about.

He pulled his eyes away from this magnetic booty, to see…

Freckles.

Tons of them, over Milo’s shoulders and back, starting strong on top, and getting less the lower it went. Little ginger dots on his skin, fine specks and droplets. They covered his upper arms and shoulders as well, but only a bit, the majority ran over his neck and his back, until they fully dissipated over his butt.

Milo looked over his shoulder towards Gordie, and whispered, gravitas seeping into his voice: “I never show my back in public, I made some … bad experiences with previous partners and dates in the past. I don’t need the media to know as well. … It was even worse in school, when we had PE, you know how cruel teenagers can be… Calling me “ugly” or “disgusting” … It’s… It’s not true, I came to learn that, and it’s nothing bad nowadays, really, but… but I felt like you should know. … I was nervous to come here today, but… we will be in a VIP bath, and not many people will be around us, nobody will have phones or cameras with them, so… I wanted to be here, with you, despite all… this.”

Gordie gasped, but not in shock.

It was the realisation that someone like Milo, the most attractive man he knew, could have insecurities about his body as well.

Where Gordie had his body weight, Milo had his freckles.

It had never occurred to him that Milo could feel this way about himself.

He had always seen this smiling, jolly lad on TV and at work, who seemed to beam with self-confidence and courage at any given time. Never would he have guessed that only something as simple as a shirt was hiding a deep insecurity for him.

An insecurity born from his peers and his surroundings, not from himself.

That society could find cruel “””defects””” even in such a perfectly shaped man.

Gordie gulped, feeling emotional, but answered quietly: “I don’t think it’s ugly or disgusting…” and came a few steps forward. “I think… it’s beautiful even.”

He stood directly behind Milo now, and asked, “…May I touch your freckles?”

Milo nodded quickly, trembling with emotion.

With a gentle touch, Gordie put his hand on Milo’s broad back.

How warm and soft he was.

Under his palm, he could feel Milo breathe, his back gently heaving with every breath.

Taking a few fingers, he ran them over Milo’s back, tracing big freckles and running over the smaller ones, tilting his head at the shapes and forms he could see.

“It reminds me of snow…” said Gordie quietly, “Soft falling snow on a winter morning… Starting off strong on top…” he let his hand run down Milo’s spine, “And then getting less and less, until it settles in the clear, sunny landscape…”

His hand went up again, caressing Milo’s shoulders. “I have never seen freckles like these, but they look beautiful on you…” he breathed quietly, to make sure no one heard them.

“Gordie…” he heard Milo whimper, and Gordie immediately pulled his hand back. Oh God, had he said too much? Had this been a wrong thing to do?

Milo suddenly turned around and **BLAM** hugged Gordie with all his might.

“Hergch!!” All the air was knocked out Gordie’s windpipes, but he immediately caught himself, when he heard Milo whimpering next to his face: “Nobody has ever said that to me…!! Thank you…!!”

And there they stood, Milo hugging Gordie, both only in their swimwear in a locker room in a public bathhouse.

It felt emotional and true. To both of them.

Even if they had seen each other only a few times in person after showing interest in each other, they had shared so much to each other like they never done with anybody else.

Gordie hugged back, his hands running over Milo’s broad back again. To feel the other so close, with such intimate proximity was an unparalleled feeling. Like the beginning of something new and beautiful. All over again.

They hugged each other and held one another in mutual support.

After a few moments of soothing comfort, Milo separated from the hug to look at Gordie’s eyes, his eyes teared up. He whispered, close to Gordie’s face: “ _Thank you…”_

Gently, they touched foreheads with a small bump of affection, and Gordie replied: “ _Of course…”_

Then, Milo let go and start grinning his usual bright grin again: “We haven’t even entered the bath yet and I’m already emotional, haha!” and gave a hearty laugh, wiping a tear away.

“Haha, always let all those emotions out, bottling them up never helps anyone!” smiled Gordie back, and patted Milo’s shoulder.

_If only he could follow his own advice so well, Gordie thought._

Milo stuffed everything into his locker too, then swiped his card to close it, and gave it to Gordie, who put it into his trunks pocket as well.

“Time for me to how you the Circhester Bath House!” beamed Gordie and gestured forward with an inviting swing. “After you!”

“With pleasure!” smiled Milo back, and they both walked out the door towards the main hallway that branched off into other bath house areas.

~ ~ ~

Gordie walked Milo through many of the public bath places: a sauna, the many whirlpools and hot tubs, a big swimming pool where people could train, and finally: the VIP hot springs.

Once they walked in through the wooden swing doors, Milo’s face lit up.

It was a small yet cosy area with ceramic floor tiles, a big window to see the surrounding snowy forest, and a small hot, steaming pool, build out of natural stone, with surrounding plants. A big steel door on the left side lead to the outside garden, and some showers were to the right.

“The hot water comes directly from the underground basin and gets channelled into this naturalistic pool. It’s supposed to look like a pond, and I love soaking in it, just thinking about nothing. Nobody except VIPs can enter, so nobody comes to disturb, very rarely have I even met any other gym leader here or someone similar.” explained Gordie, pointing at the beautiful bath. “We should be alone and undisturbed here.” he finished, with a confident smile.

“I love it!” remarked Milo cheerfully and immediately made his way to the showers, to wash himself off and go into the lovely hot pond.

_(“Showering before entering a bath or pool is very important, Gordie! That way you don’t dirty the water, and you don’t get a temperature shock!” the words of his mum reverbed in Gordie’s head. Milo knew how proper bath etiquette, that was good.)_

Milo followed, and after a quick shower and rinse, they both made way to their VIP bath.

“After you!” gestured Gordie towards Milo and lead him to the pool. The warm large stones felt lovely under their wet feet, and the water looked hot and inviting.

“Waaaah…” gasped Milo, taking his first step inside the pool, the steam fully engulfing his body. Slowly, he let himself sink in, and walked further into it, until he was up to his shoulders in water. “…Oh, that feels amazing!!!” smiled Milo, his eyes squinted with happy comfort, “The perfect thing after this cold weather and long travel!”

“Hm-hm!” chuckled Gordie, “Glad to see that you like it!” With careful steps, he followed, and also let himself sink inside the hot and comfortable water. There was something so soothing about the warm steam touching his wet skin, and to hear the calm splatter and pitter patter of the water around him.

The artificial pond pool was surrounded with ferns and rocks, giving them additional comforting security. No one would see them or disturb them here. And if someone came in, another gym leader or staff member, they would have enough time to come up with a distraction or act to put on.

“Like our own little hideaway den!” grinned Gordie, his blue sunglasses fogging up as he spoke. He immediately rubbed them clear again with his water-soaked hands.

“I really like this…” sighed Milo, sinking in a bit deeper, the water now up to his jaw. “So warm and comfortable…”

“We can lean here against the wall, and over here are underwater stone steps to sit on!” pointed Gordie towards the far away edge of the pool. His glasses fogged up again, he quickly rubbed them clean, drips of water rolling off them.

They floated over to the spot and sat down in the soothing hot spring water. With their chests just above the water line, they could rest back on their elbows and enjoy the calm atmosphere.

There they sat, next to each other, with only the faintest of drips and noises around them.

“ _Haaaaah…_ ” Milo and Gordie both sighed in relief and rising relaxation.

How good it felt to be engulfed in a warm body of water. As if all stress was suddenly melting off their minds and spirits.

Gordie brushed his glasses with his wet hand, as they were covered in steam - yet again.

Next to him, Milo tilted his head, and said: “… You can take them off if you want to, they will probably fog up the whole time.” After a beat and no reaction from Gordie, Milo hesitantly asked: “… Or don’t you want to take them off?”

Gordie blushed, not only from the rising temperature, but…

“… You’re right… It should be fine to take them off.”

He grabbed them neatly on the side, and slowly pulled them off.

With a small plastic clatter, he placed them on the pool edge.

“… I can trust you that won’t laugh…” whispered Gordie, and finally, looked at Milo.

Milo’s eyes widened a bit as he saw Gordie without his trusted blue sunglasses: He had never seen him without them, maybe only a photoshoot, but… there was nothing unusual about them.

Gordie had deep ocean-blue eyes, and now that Milo was seeing them closer, he could see how beautiful they actually were. Something about these round, friendly eyes was very endearing.

_Brown eyes met blue ones in a comfortable silence._

Gordie, however, seemed to grow more confused the more time passed.

Finally, he blurted out: “… Ok, I have big eyes, I don’t like t-them! They don’t fit me at all!”

“Oh…!” wondered Milo, and wanted to answer: “I think they’re-“

But Gordie cut him off, entangled in his own thoughts, “I always wear these sharp sunglasses to look cooler, they fit my hair style and clothes, because… Which badass trainer has “cute eyes”???”

Milo could see the watery reflections in these friendly blue pupils, and tried to cut in: “Gordie, I think they’re really-“

“I got them from my mum, just like my damn body shape and weight, I never signed up for this!” Gordie looked really frustrated, his big eyes looking distraught, “Why do I always have to work so much for the things that come naturally to other people-“

“ **Gordie**.”

Milo had put his hand on Gordie’s shoulder.

“!!!” twitched Gordie in response with an inaudible squeak and fell silent.

Milo’s friendly button eyes looked at him in a warm supportive manner.

“Gordie, your eyes are truly adorable, and I think they fit you very well. And the sunglasses look really good on you too.” he patted Gordie’s shoulder with his large hand. “There is nothing to worry about, trust me.”

As calming as Milo’s words were, they could not reach his heart fully.

“I know…” sighed Gordie, letting his head hang down. His blonde wet hair hung in strands over his forehead, dripping off water. “It’s not as bad as other people’s problems. … You just opened up to me about your freckles, and here I sit, making a bigger fuss over way less…”

He could feel the worried looks of Milo.

And yet, he couldn’t stop himself sinking into a deeper mental hole, whispering: “I really am hopeless, am I…? Getting upset over such minute things, while others have it way worse than me…”

Milo let his hand slide over the Gordie’s back, and gave him a few reassuring pats.

“Hey…” Milo said in the gentlest tone, “I… I feel like there is maybe more to all of that, do you want to tell me? Vent all of that out…?”

Gordie could only glance away, towards the windows, and see the snow fall in silence.

White flakes danced in the cold wind outside.

_This was going to be difficult._

Milo smiled, and then said: “I remember someone who told me just a few minutes ago that you should let those emotions out, not bottle them up!” and lifted a knowing finger.

He was right, thought Gordie.

A deep sigh escaped his lips.

He had to start somewhere.

He had always wanted to talk about this with someone.

In the last passing days and weeks, he wanted to talk to Milo.

And he was now here, right by his side, listening.

“I… I’m not happy with my body. I don’t like most of it and there isn’t much I can change.” Gordie began, looking down.

“My eyes are just the smallest of the issues. I can hide them pretty well with sunglasses, I even made the sunglasses my own stylish statement piece. My eyes are big and round, they don’t fit my image as a tough Rock Gym leader at all. For fancy photoshoots or something, I can take them off and people will be amazed by this ‘other side’ that I’m showing them, but this is my real side all the time.”

Milo listened to him attentively, nodding occasionally while focusing on his face.

Gordie continued, his tone getting sadder:

“The eyes are probably just tip of the iceberg that point at something bigger. … Heh, bigger in the truest sense of the word.”

He grabbed his own love handles underwater and gave them a small shake.

“I don’t like these. I don’t like this body at all. … And I tried so much already. Diets, sports, whatever Seviper oil or trending weight loss plan. I just don’t lose it. … It probably has something to do with my metabolism, since my mum is the same, but…”

He sighed gravely, his voice beginning to crack:

“… In her case, people just praise her! ‘Look how well she looks for her age!’ ‘What a plus size queen!’ ‘A strong role model for all big women out there!’ … Do I ever get called ‘Plus Size King’? Or… I don’t know, a role model? No, I’m called **fat** on social media!!”

His eyes began to get watery, looking at Milo:

“I try and do so much, but it’s not helping! I work out every day! I go to the gym and train acrobatics! Do people never see that I do a backflip every time I throw a Pokéball?? I want to show them that I’m fit and capable, and yet… I never see me get any underwear and swimwear photoshoots or have someone say to me ‘Well done!’ I just don’t lose any this weight, and what I do is never enough!!”

Tears began to stream down his face.

“I never asked for this body! And here I am, I got it free of charge, together with a Gym I had to inherit pretty much against my will, just because I belong to the McMorris family! I wanted to be an archaeologist, but no, here I am in front of thousands of cameras every day and try my best to match those beautiful and much more capable people around me!!”

Milo’s worried face made Gordie tear up even more, and Milo began to pat his back, his wet hand gently brushing his shoulder.

“A-And…” Gordie was sobbing, now fully crying “I f-feel like I have no right to complain! I… I’m a Gym leader, for goodness’ sake, I have a whole Gym, I have several clothing lines, souvenir shops and stores, I have employees and trainers who look up to me, I have a hometown that likes me, I can still uphold my hobby of collecting stones, I have the protection of my mum and my family name, I have a fan club…!! And yet… I feel so incapable, so unappealing, so utterly alone in this world sometimes… I have no right to complain, Milo…”

Gordie’s wet hair hung in strands over his face, trembling with him.

“How can these little unimportant things break me so much…? W-Where did I go wrong…”

Gordie was covering his face with his hands, crying loudly.

“ ** _Ahaaaaahaaaaaaa…!!!”_** he sobbed, his broken voice echoing from the floor tiles and stones around them through the empty bath.

“There, there…” whispered Milo, and put his arm around Gordie – who immediately rolled himself face first into Milo’s chest, clinging on to him.

“ _Oh…_ ” gasped Milo, but smiled and hugged Gordie back, patting his head and back. “Let all of it out…” said Milo quietly.

_There was such a soothing quality in having someone just listen to you._

_All these thoughts had been raging inside Gordie’s mind for years and years, without anyone to talk to or listen to him._

_When intrusive and toxic thoughts are lingering in a shapeless form too long in one’s brain, they can feel like invincible ghosts that haunt you for all eternity._

_But having them spoken out loud, to someone else, made them even more real and graspable - and thus, taking a form he could finally see clearly. A shape that was not as freighting anymore. A thought he could share with someone._

“It’s alright, Gordie…” whispered Milo, holding his trembling Gordie in his arms. “You are allowed to cry and be hurt…”

Being held by Milo was so comforting, so warm, and so very supportive.

Chest to chest with his partner, Gordie could let go of his inner turmoil.

Acceptance and communication are the first step to improvement, and the foundation of any good relationship.

The warm water around them gave them a soothing sense of protection, as if they were wrapped in a shared blanket of privacy.

Holding each other, warm hands on their backs.

A few comfortable moments passed, and Milo could feel Gordie calming down, his sobs getting slower and weaker – until he stopped trembling and looked up at him.

“T-Thank you so much, Milo…” uttered Gordie, his wide sad eyes looking at him.

“You’re welcome…” whispered Milo back, “I will always be there if you need me…” and blinked slowly with a warm smile.

“… I don’t want to be a bother to you, Milo.” answered Gordie, a sad blush coming over his wet face, “So… please tell me if it’s too much, or I just… complain too much about life.”

“You have the right to complain, Gordie.” said Milo back immediately with an understanding nod, “… You said that you have no right to complain, because your problems seem insignificant to other people’s, but… We all have our own packages of problems to bear and doing size comparisons there is not really helpful.”

Milo began to pet Gordie’s head, his big hand running over his wet blonde hair.

“I remember having read something somewhere once: ‘There are only two things in life you cannot argue about: Taste and pain.’ And that’s right, you know? … You can have an argument between someone who likes strawberries and one who likes bananas, and they will never come to a conclusion which one is the ‘better’ fruit… If something like ‘better’ even exists in that context.”

Gordie listened attentively to Milo, feeling his own heartbeat relax with every new word.

“And it’s the same with pain.” Milo continued, “Something that hurts one person mentally, is nothing to another person. Maybe that one person had a traumatic experience in their life, and still feels that pain, while the other person just shakes it off and goes about their day. … It works the other way around too. You cannot put a number on pain and say, ‘Getting bullied for their weight is easier to handle than getting bullied for freckles’, or ‘Having anxiety is not that bad, having X is worse!’ … And even if that were the case, and pain can be measured: Does the person who was stabbed with one sword not have the right to complain about their pain… just because the person next to them was stabbed with two?”

Gordie could only look at these friendly brown eyes again and tear up all over.

“M-Milo…”

He smiled back, and continued with his warm, emotional voice:

“I had to deal with freckles, and terrible teenagers who made fun of me and put me down. I had to hide my homosexuality for most of my life and live in fear that the yellow press might find out and out my partner and me to the world. It would hurt me so much if I could not protect them. … So, all of them left me before I could get really serious, mostly after a few months, none of my relationships held longer than a year. … Your story is different from mine, you told me that you felt invalid in your bisexuality, and that your family is not properly supporting you in your endeavors, privately and professionally. You have the Gym because your mother gave it to you, and you share it every alternate week, which is very rare and stressful, family businesses always are. Since you didn’t choose them, you inherited them. You fight with the gossip and the tabloids, we all do, but all have different fights … Your pain is real, and you don’t have to feel like you don’t have the right to complain. Your pain is different from mine, but it’s as real to you, as mine is to me.”

Milo smiled.

“It’s ok, Gordie. You can let everything out. And I want to support you, as much as you have supported me and listened to my worries.”

His hand went over Gordie’s cheek, and then down to his shoulder again, leaving a trail of emotional warmth behind.

With a sad smile, but a hopeful glint in his deep brown eyes, Milo concluded:

“… I have never had much of a chance being someone’s… proper partner, since it never fully came to be for many reasons, but now… I want to be your boyfriend, Gordie. And I want to be here for you... but only i-if you want me to be your boyfriend!” ended Milo with a short shy exclamation and blush.

Gordie’s heart was thumping in his throat, galloping at racing speed, not even fully grasping what he just heard.

But more than anything, even if words were failing him right now, as tears ran down his blushed cheeks, he could feel that this was everything he ever wanted.

_It felt right._

_For the first time in his life._

_To be understood, to be supported, to be listened to, to be comforted and held._

“M-Milo…” Gordie whispered, his coarse voice gripped by sheer emotion, “Of course I want you to be my boyfriend…!!! I want to be yours too!!”

Milo’s gasp and blushing smile told him everything he needed to know in this very moment.

Their hug got stronger, and they held each other with heartfelt vigour, fingertips pressing into each other’s skin.

_Gordie’s hand resting on Milo’s freckled back._

_Milo’s hand brushing over Gordie’s love handles._

With their heads on the other one’s shoulder, they were warm and snug in the hot springs water. Sitting on these underwater stone steps, and finding comfort in each other, more and more with every passing day.

Milo finally parted from the hug a little, coming up to Gordie’s face again, and wiped a single tear out of the corner of his eye: “Every time we see each other it’s so emotional! We definitely need to talk and see each other more!”

Gordie, whose face was overflown with happy tears, could only sniffle and grin: “Hehe, we really have to! I feel like all these emotions need to get out more often, they will just build up if we don’t see each other!”

“Haha, yes, true!” smiled Milo, brimming with joy over their new relationship.

_Boyfriends._

Gordie came up to Milo’s face, and his nose gently touched his.

“… Can I kiss you, my dear boyfriend?” he whispered, blushing heavily under this new and exciting expression he could use.

“Of course, Gordie, always…” smiled Milo back.

They tilted their heads, slowly, as water dripped down their hair.

Milo’s lips gently met Gordie’s.

How soft they were.

How gentle they felt.

Warm with rising steam and wet from the humidity of the bath.

“ _Hah_ …” Gordie gasped.

They met again, softly, lips on lips.

“ _Hm…_ ” sighed Gordie, feeling his heart beat faster, “ _Mh_ …” Milo answered, parting for a split-second only to kiss his lips anew.

Milo’s hands drifted through the water, and with a warm touch, both his palms rested on Gordie’s big hips.

Gordie felt this, felt the love running through his body, and hugged back – his hands also touching Milo’s toned hips.

He came closer, and his hands reached around Milo, his palms now resting on his broad back.

They embraced. Kissing more.

“ _Mnh_ …” moaned Gordie, a bit louder than before, and Milo answered, “ _Nah_ …” as their lips met again and again.

And then it dawned on them both:

This was different than the kiss in the greenhouse in Turffield.

Where this kiss had been a first point in a blossoming relationship, with hand-holding and initial nervousness, this kiss here now… was something new.

Gordie felt it, so did Milo: This kiss was more than just them sharing their emotions, support and understanding, they were exploring a whole new, yet important feeling in their relationship:

This kiss… was _sexual._

Gordie was trembling, breathing stronger through his nose, “ _H_ - _Hmnh_ …”, he wanted it, and as their lips met anew: He licked Milo’s lower lip.

Just a quick brush, a knocking on a door, asking for entry, waiting for an answer – and the answer came: Milo sighed, warm breath escaping his parted lips, and… his tongue brushed Gordie’s lips back.

“ _Hah_ …” Gordie gasped, knitting his brows, and then… their lips met again, but now, the tips of their tongues touched each other.

“ _Mnh_ …” moaned Milo, his hands wandering around Gordie’s back, and Gordie answered the hug. They embraced each other tighter, their chests met.

Their tongues slid against each other, kissing again and again, it felt out of this world. So warm, so intimate, so emotional, yet… lustful.

As if both were still worried to do the first step, Gordie because this was new to him, Milo because he didn’t want to be too fast, but now, with this kiss – they both could feel that they were ready for each other.

Their lips now fully covered each other, their eyes closed with deep understanding, and Milo had tilted his head further to kiss Gordie deeper. Their tongues met inside their hot mouths, gliding along and into the other, underlined by moans and sighs of shared rising pleasure.

“ _M-Milo_ …” gasped Gordie, hugging him tighter, his hand firmly between Milo’s huge shoulder blades, “ _Hmnh… Hah… Nnh…”_ moaning into this French kiss, “ _Gordie… Hah…_ ” answered Milo, his big hands pressing and holding Gordie more.

But more than the feeling, the togetherness, and the rising passion in this warm and steamy bath – it was the noises: The quiet splatter of water, of them moving in the steam, the breathless sighs and moans, and their wet hands repositioning on their soaked skin, the wet kiss and lip smacks as they met again and again.

The quietness all around them, with only a few splashes of water, made their own noises even more intense, they were even more… turning them on.

It sounded _dirty._

“ _Mnah… Hah…!”_ moaned Gordie even louder, it felt as if the shackles around his heart had finally broken apart: He was kissing Milo, his Milo, the man he had feelings for and wanted to be together with. Years and years of being worried about his bisexuality, if he felt valid for never having kissed a man – these worries all fell off him. It felt good. It felt so good.

He was his boyfriend.

He wanted more.

So, so much more.

With a big moan, he hugged Milo even harder, his belly pressed against his abs, feeling these big pecs against his chest, and entered Milo’s mouth with his tongue even deeper.

To his surprise, Milo immediately answered, his warm mouth kissing Gordie back, and his soaked, wet tongue circling his. Their lips met again, over and over, and everything sounded even dirtier than before.

 _“Mnh…! Nnh…! M-Milo…!”_ he moaned, his eyes dazed with lust, closing them again to savour, to feel, to take everything in, feeling Milo’s embrace, and heard him sighing back, _“Mnah… Gordie…”_

Their moans created a sweet hum in their covered lips, and now, they could feel it even more:

_It was turning them on._

_Very much._

This kiss, this lust, this shared emotion of pleasure was running through their bodies, making their hearts beat faster, and now… accumulating in their loins.

 _“H-Hah…!”_ Gordie gasped into their kiss as he felt it.

_They were hard._

_Rock hard._

They both separated from their kiss with a gasp, panting heavily.

 _“Hah… Hah…”_ breathed Gordie, looking into Milo’s half-closed lustful eyes, just in front of him.

These brown kind eyes he had always seen so full of sunlit life and bright joy… they were now filled with something else: A fire of passion, burning for him, and only for him.

It looked amazing.

“ _Hah… Ngah…”_ Milo panted, then, a smile came on his face, and he looked down.

He chuckled, and Gordie also looked down, to spot between them:

Their erections were quite visible in their swimwear under water.

His own tent poking out his grey swimming trunks, but Milo’s…

It made Gordie’s eyes widen.

_Milo’s erection._

_It was **massive**. Very respectable in size._

Not comically huge or scary, but… impressive.

And looked even _more_ impressive stretching out his tight white speedoes.

“W-Wow…” gasped Gordie, seeing this beautiful hard-on so close to his.

“I… I’m so sorry…” grinned Milo, blushing excessively, even more so in this humid bath, “I… I got a bit carried away… I… I didn’t want to cause an erection to happen… Heh…”

_Something about Milo’s bright and innocent mannerism, together with this physical, hard lust, was turning Gordie on even more._

“No, Milo, no need to apologise… I… I really like it…” gasped Gordie, a bit breathless, trying to pull himself together, still in awe of this massive cock in front of him.

He looked straight at Milo, and their eyes met again, only inches away from each other: “I want this. You are everything I wanted. … And I want this to continue. … P-Please.” Gordie blushed as he finished that sentence.

The bright and attentive eyes of Milo were right in front of him, and as he had spoken his mind, he could see that the fire of passion was ignited in Milo again.

“ _Gordie_ …” breathed Milo, his eyes half-closed. The water running down his face, the blushing, and the wet ginger hair… it made Milo look so much more intense than usual.

It was a side Milo had never shared with anyone, never with the public, nor his previous partners: That under this outer shell of smiles and sunshine, was someone who deeply cared, and who was full of passion and lust for his beloved. It was a side he was unsure to show, and never really had the chance of fully showing, since all his previous relationships had never reached that deep of a connection before – out of fear and loss.

He could finally show his deepest core.

Unbound. Unshackled by society.

Alone, here, with his boyfriend.

“ _Gordie… I want you…”_ Milo moaned and hugged him stronger. Their kiss met, again, but went deep immediately. Milo’s tongue entered Gordie immediately, split his lips and ran between them, and met his tongue with hot vigour.

“ _Mnh_ …!!!” moaned Gordie back, clinging onto Milo’s back, his fingertips digging into his large, freckled shoulders. His eyes closed with passion, and he was overwhelmed with emotion.

And then, he could feel it.

Milo was gently thrusting himself against Gordie, his big, hard erection rubbing against his.

“ _Mmmnh_ …!!” sighed Gordie into the kiss, the wet lip smacks of them met over and over.

Their erections were so strong, stretching out their swimwear so much, it felt out of this world.

He could feel how… big, thick and hard Milo’s cock was, so tight and close against his own.

Their kisses, their hard-ons, their hugs, their tongues meeting with strings of saliva…

It was so much.

So much.

It sounded _so dirty._

The splashing water, their combined moans, their wet skin-on-skin, Milo pressing Gordie against the pool wall… and the surrounding silence of anonymity, that no one could see or hear them.

They were free.

Free to kiss. Free to feel. Free to finally explore and experience what had been missing so much in their lives.

Together.

_“Hah… Mnah…!! M-Milo...!! Y-Yes…!”_ moaned Gordie, even louder than before, disconnecting from the deep kiss and throwing his head back. He spread his legs under water, he wanted to feel so much more, feel Milo’s thick, big erection against his own, feel the fabric brush against each other.

Milo immediately grabbed Gordie tighter, and suddenly, he shifted his hands and grabbed Gordie’s thighs under water … Then… he lifted him up a bit. “ _A-Ah…!”_ gasped Gordie, blushing hard, something about Milo manhandling him with his massive strength was incredibly arousing.

Having sex with Milo would be amazing, he thought, breathing faster, his heartbeat thumping in his chest, feeling everything so close and directly.

“ _Hah… Hah…”_ Milo was panting, holding Gordie in his strong arms, up to his face. If they had been in a bed, this would be an enticing missionary position. But in this pool, on these underwater stone steps, it was an extremely intimate and sexual moment of proximity.

“ _G_ - _Gordie_ …” began Milo again, his shoulders heaving, breathing deeply with unleashed lust. Gordie could see that he was extremely aroused, his massive cock bulging out his speedos to the absolute limit, the rim already stretched to the max.

“I… As much as… I would like to have sex with you… right here… a-and right now…” Milo stammered, blinking excessively, the mix of passionate eyes and extremely flustered cheeks making Gordie’s heart beat in his throat, “I... I would like to… to wait… for now.”

 _“ **Huh?”** _escaped Gordie immediately.

Gordie tilted his head, holding on to Milo’s shoulders for support, he was quite confused.

Why would Milo want to stop now?

Right here in this sexually charged passionate encounter?

But as Milo began to explain, it made more and more sense to him.

“I… I would like our first time to be… something special. Somewhere… where we can take our time and be comfortable. Take time for… a lot of f-foreplay, and not be worried that anyone could barge in at any point in time, like… right now.”

Gordie nodded. Milo was right. Even if this were a VIP-bath, people could still enter, staff or maybe another gym leader. That would be an embarrassing first time, not to mention a potential nation-wide scandal waiting to happen.

Milo was still blushing heavily, his chest heaving with sexual arousal: “A-And… I have an idea for that already… I have something planned for us…! So… a-as much as I want you Gordie, heh, y-you can see how much I want you… (he glanced down at their erections) … I-Is it ok if we have sex another time…? … W-Water doesn’t make for the best lube either, and I w-want this to be as enjoyable for you as possible… Prepare you… a-and make you feel good…” Milo was blushing so hard, in combination with his ginger hair it looked like his head was on fire.

“I-It’s not that I don’t want to, far from it…! B-But… I want it to be special… because you are special to me.” Milo’s voice was emotional, his big eyes looking straight into Gordie’s.

“You are special to me… Gordie.” whispered Milo again, massively flustered.

And Gordie’s heart nearly exploded with emotion.

“I care about you too, Milo…!” smiled Gordie, and hugged him, warm and intimately.

Chest to chest and cheek to cheek, horny but overcome with emotion, in the hot springs.

They kissed again, with short and sweet meeting of their lips.

Milo was still very flustered, his erection was speaking volumes about how aroused he was, but exactly this physical lewdness paired with his sunny and shy attitude was all the more endearing to Gordie.

“You are right…” whispered Gordie, “We shouldn’t risk a public scandal for something like this. … And I would like to have more time for foreplay…”

In one smooth move, Gordie’s hand moved up towards Milo’s chest, and he trailed his breast with one finger. Blushing himself even more, Gordie smirked and said: “I really would like to touch and feel you… These look so fascinating to me… I have never seen pecs this large…”

“O-Oh…” gasped Milo, looking down at Gordie’s finger brushing over his sensitive wet skin.

“May I…?” sighed Gordie tilting his head and looking at Milo’s large glistening chest, too devilishly amused by this whole situation.

“Y-Yes…” stammered Milo, his pecs heaving with shy arousal, his erection underwater standing strong.

Gordie grinned, and then… gently squeezed Milo’s big pec.

_How soft and big it was. Full handful of warm beauty under his fingertips._

“A-AAH!” moaned Milo so loudly it echoed in the bath – and he immediately clasped his hand in front of his mouth, his flushed cheeks redder than a Charizard’s flame.

In the same surprised moment, Gordie pulled his hand away, he had NOT expected such a strong reaction.

What a sexual sound had escaped Milo’s lips, wow.

His moans and sighs during the kiss had been so raunchy already, but this was a whole new level of sexual expression.

“… I’m s-so sorry, but… you can see that I’m a little s-sensitive there…!” stammered Milo, trying to regain his composure.

“No, no, no, really, I’m sorry!” responded Gordie immediately, waving off these lewd steamy feelings, but failing exceptionally at it. (They both still had raging hard erections at this point.)

“You can t-touch mine too!!” he blurted out in complete nervousness instead.

A moment of silence passed, the drips and little splashes of the water reverberating in the large room.

“… R-Really…?” asked Milo with wide curious eyes.

Gordie was now even more nervous, did Milo really want to touch his body???

…

Well, of course he would like to, they had just kissed and were boyfriends now, but hearing it so straight to the point and out loud…

It made Gordie’s heart beat even faster.

Milo was wading through the water, looking to the side in a shy manner, but then his eyes found Gordie’s again. He seemed highly flustered, his face still red, but he gently lifted his hand, and said:

“I would love to…”

He swallowed, and continued, his hand coming closer: “I… I hadn’t told you yet, but… I do find you a-attractive, Gordie. … You said earlier that you don’t like the body shape you have, and I will support you if you want to change, or any advice from me…”

His fingertips touched Gordie’s chest. It jiggled a bit underwater.

“Mnh…” moaned Gordie quietly. It felt good to be touched there.

“But… I do like that there is so much of you to love. … Your size is beautiful… Your thighs are amazing, I have seen them in your Gym leader shorts… And those love handles too…”

Milo’s hand trailed down, over Gordie’s tummy, to his large hip, where it rested for a split second.

“… I-I do find you very attractive…” grinned Milo, and then took his hand back to scratch his own neck in a shy manner.

Gordie felt like tearing up again as he heard these words. Nobody had ever talked about his body like that. And not only that, but that Milo was willing to help and accept him if anything changed.

The warmth of these loving words was beating in his heart … and his erection.

“ _Milo… That’s so sweet of you…_ ” Gordie began, his voice already cracking under the emotional outpour building up in him.

He wanted to hug and kiss Milo so much right now - but that would probably make them even hornier and that would lead to even more of a mess.

Suddenly, Gordie had an idea to solve this.

“Say, Milo…” he started, wiping a tear away from his eye, “I think we should both cool down, get back to our talk and bath time, and get rid of our erections, don’t you think?”

Milo nodded very quickly, his ginger hair flipping drips all over the place, and he asked: “Yes, but how? I don’t want us to get into any trouble, and those…” he gestured downwards in a vague manner, “Those d-don’t go away easily!”

But Gordie grinned cheekily.

“Oh, I have the perfect idea. It’ll go away for us both… immediately.”

Milo’s wide eyes were confused and excited at the same time.

“Follow me…” Gordie’s cunning blue eyes invited Milo to walk with him, out of the pool and towards the door.

Their strong erections didn’t disturb them while they took their wet, dripping steps over the natural stone floor.

The steel door Milo had already seen when they had entered…

Gordie grabbed the handle, and with a big swing, he opened it.

Snow.

Snow everywhere.

A big waft of icy cold wind flew inside, hitting them both with a wall of invisible ice.

“Hahaha!” didn’t I tell you the bath also has an outside area?” laughed Gordie, looking out the door with great pleasure. Outside was a small open area that looked like a garden covered in thick, deep snow, surrounded by a high fence and even more forest trees.

“OH LORD ARCEUS IN HEAVEN, THAT’S SO COLD!!!” screamed Milo, immediately clamping up and grabbing his own arms, curling into a ball as much as he could while standing.

“Exactly, that’s the point of the Galarian bath culture!” grinned Milo, completely impervious to the stinging cold breeze that was engulfing them. A few snowflakes flew inside as well, which landed in his hair. “You heat yourself up, and then you cool yourself down with snow in this special outside area!”

“YOU CAN’T BE SERIOUS!!” groaned Milo, clattering through his clenched teeth.

“I’m absolutely serious, we will only go out for about a minute, maybe less, and then return safe and sound to out hot springs pool.” explained Gordie. “This way of heating up and cooling down really quickly builds up your immune system and makes you stronger. I have done this ever since I was a kid!”

He patted Milo on his trembling back. “Off you go, roll in the snow!”

“ROLL IN THE SNOW?!?” screamed Milo, his eyes wide open with temperature terror, “HALF-NAKED IN A SPEEDO?!?!?”

“Hahaha! Yes, exactly, and I will do the same! Come on! This will make us stronger and make our erections go away faster than you can say ‘Arcticuno’ three times!”

“OH LORD!” screamed Milo, “FINE, BUT I’LL-“

Gordie immediately grabbed Milo’s hand, and stormed outside dragging his trembling large boyfriend behind him.

“Hahahahaha! Here we go!!!!” laughed Gordie, overjoyed to relive his care-free days when he would do this with his friends and classmates, “AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!” screamed Milo behind him, “IT’S SO COOOOOLD!!” as they ran through the ankle-deep white snow with bare feet.

The wind blew around them, the snowflakes landed gently on their steaming hot skin, and melted away immediately.

“And now, jump!!!” yelled Gordie to Milo behind him, and **_FOOMP_** he landed in the deep snow face first on his tummy. The snow was deeper here, and Gordie sank in quite a bit. Then, he rolled around, throwing snow in the air, wiggling as if making a snow angel. “Hahahaha!! It’s so cold and good! Hohoooooo!”

“OK, HERE I COME!!” yelled Milo in the most unsure voice-cracking scream Gordie had ever witnessed, and then **_FOOMPF_** Milo landed next to him in the deep snow.

“MMMMMMMMMMMMMPHHH” Milo was screaming with his face downwards, in the snow, muffled through the thick white layer that surrounded them, and then turned around abruptly, now lying on his back. “AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!! COLD COLD COLD COLD COOOOOOOOLD!!!!!!” he began to yelp so loudly it could shatter glass.

Even more steam rose from their glistening skin. The freezing thick snow felt like millions and millions upon small needles on their bodies, but in an oddly pleasant way of conveying pain.

And one thing was for certain: This intense shock of coldness could kill any erection in no time.

“Roll around some more!!!” yelled Gordie, laughing with joy, “Then we will go back in a few seconds!” rubbing snow all over himself. “AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!” was the only thing Milo could answer, his face frozen in this never-before-seen assault of temperature on his senses. There was something incredibly comedic about his terrified face and large trembling body, Milo really had never done this - a culture shock on all his senses.

“Quick! Let’s get back!!” yelled Gordie, got up and reached out with his hand to pick Milo up from the freezing ground. Milo immediately snatched his hand and held on to it with his dear life. Snow sliding off them, snowflakes dancing around in the air, their heavy and quick footsteps crunched quickly through the white snow, running back to the bath house.

Gordie slid through the steel door, Milo behind him let go of his hand and jumped headfirst into the hot bath again with a mighty **SPLASH**.

As Gordie closed the door shut again, he couldn’t stop smiling.

“How are you?” he asked in a friendly tone towards Milo, who was up to his chin in the hot spring water again, his eyes closed.

“Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah…” was the only answer Milo could muster, a deep satisfied sigh of complete and utter happiness. Fully content soaking in the warm goodness surrounding his body.

Gordie walked into the pool again too, with careful steps towards his happy Milo. “You did really well for your first time!” he said and patted Milo’s large, freckled back. “You feel really reinvigorated, and it makes you stronger in the long run! … And it makes you appreciate the hot water even more!” Gordie grinned.

“Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmh…” sighed Milo, 100% satisfied in the hot water. His gentle smiling face reminded Gordie of a large happy cat curled up by the fireplace, someone who is completely in tune with themselves and world, basking in the beautiful warmth of their content life.

With a happy sigh, Gordie let himself sink into the water as well, next to Milo. “I love the temperature shock of the snow… It feels like a wake-up call, one that brings you back to the things that matter the most…” Milo next to him just nodded, water splashing quietly.

How peaceful it was now.

The sexual tension had been lifted, stored away for another better time, and dissolved into full relaxation of the mind and body. Gordie looked down himself and then Milo. Heh, yes, their erections were indeed gone. Everything flaccid and warm again. Relaxed crotches in comfy swimwear.

True comfort between just the two of them.

_“Uuuuh, I hope I’m not interrupting you lads.”_ came suddenly an old male voice from across the pool.

Abruptly, they both opened their eyes in the same split second, exclaiming: **“What?!”** and **“Huh?!?”**

In front of them, leaning against the pool edge, equally soaking in water, was:

Kabu.

The fire gym leader of Galar.

In his own Gym branded swimming trunks, red with a flame emblem on his hip. Around his neck, a soaked towel, to keep his shoulders warm. He tilted his head and smiled, water dripping off his grey hair, and he waved at them.

_How long had Kabu been here??? These thoughts went through Milo’s and Gordie’s heads in a panicked frenzy. How much had he seen? How much did he know?????? Had they just had made out in front of another Gym leader the whole time????????????_

_Gordie was petrified with terror. His anxious eyes looked at Kabu sitting there. Milo was like an unmovable brick wall, completely rigid and not even breathing, turning red as the stones this bathhouse was built out of._

Tearing himself out of that terror, Gordie began, his voice cracking: “H-Hello Kabu, didn’t see you there!! H-haha!! Welcome to Circhester Bath!” and did a huge inviting gesture opening his arms, presenting the bath they were in.

Kabu nodded and said: “Well thank you, Gordie, I have been coming here more recently. It’s good for the old bones, you see, and it reminds me of my home, Hoenn, where I used to visit Lavaridge Town on a regular basis. Wonderful hot springs, and a lovely fire gym as well!”

_Gordie was still panicking and screaming inside, Milo was silent as a house plant, sinking deeper into the water out of sheer shame._

_It couldn’t be helped, Gordie had to ask, this needed to be clarified immediately:_

“S-Say, Kabu, how long have you been here, I… uh… we didn’t see you come in? If we had seen you, we could have… h-have properly greeted you, you know, this is m-my hometown after all…”

But Kabu waved off that question: “Hahaha, don’t worry, I just arrived here a few seconds ago! Before that, I was in the hot tub, and then I came here! I just saw you exit the big door to the outside, so I made myself comfortable here. No need for formalities, we are all just a bunch of gym leaders in a VIP pool!”

**PHEW.**

Both Milo and Gordie sighed quietly in relief.

_Their secret was safe._

“Hello Kabu, long time no see.” spoke Milo finally, reaching out his hand. “I hope you have been well recently, are the trainers not too hard on you?”

Kabu took Milo’s hand and shook it energetically, drips of water flying everywhere. ”Haha, nothing to worry about, these young whippersnappers are nothing against my team of blazing Pokémon and lifelong experience! And if they win, then they most certainly deserve it!”

It was refreshing to hear another perspective on their Gym mind sets again. Milo was worried about being too soft, and Gordie feeling like it was his obligation to be an obstacle on someone else’s path. Kabu was quite in tune with himself.

Gordie and Milo looked at each other and nodded.

It was time to leave. Not that Kabu was bad company, but they needed some more privacy.

“Well, we’ll be off, Kabu, we have to be someplace. Please enjoy your stay and have a good time!” smiled Gordie, picked up his blue sunglasses, and waved to Kabu. “Yes, see you!” added Milo, and nodded goodbye.

To their surprise, Kabu immediately accepted this sudden goodbye and waved back. “See you, lads, and have a good one!”

Milo and Gordie both got out of the bath, dripping wet, and made their way to the hallway, out the big wooden swing doors they came in.

“Phew, that was so close.” whispered Milo to Gordie. “Who are you telling that? My heart nearly stopped…!” answered Gordie quietly as they walked over the warm stone floor towards the changing rooms. “I mean… we probably should have known, there were a few lockers in the VIP section that were already taken, so we were even more lucky no one caught us in the act.”

Milo could only nod, and then whispered under his breath: “What’s the plan now?” Gordie grinned and then proclaimed: “I have a plan, and it should work amazingly, even if we are a bit early!”

And so, they entered the changing rooms again, on their way to another destination.

Even if this meeting of the senses had been cut short, it had been intense, loving, and important to them.

Around the last corner, where no one could see them, Milo and Gordie held hands.

~ ~ ~

Back outside, Gordie lead Milo to a different part of the town, towards the west. After a few more steps in the crunchy snow, admiring the old houses and unique red brick architecture, waving to fans, giving autographs and petting Snoms on the path, they finally stood at their destination:

A big colourful steak house, with the even bigger sign out front that said: “BOB’S YOUR UNCLE”.

They walked in, Gordie held the door open for Milo, and they were greeted with a warm cosy atmosphere and delicious smells. “Centiiiii!” greeted the Centiskorch them at the door and wiggled in a friendly manner.

One of the waiters immediately came over, and showed them to their table, a cosy place at the end of the big hall, that was sectioned off with a room divider made from decorated wood. A few people recognised Milo and Gordie, and waved or took photos, the two simply smiled back and gave their best greetings.

“You have to try the steaks and self-made lemonade here!” shined Gordie brightly when he sat down, “They are amazing here!” Milo nodded as he took off his jacket and answered: “Yes, that sounds delicious!”

Around them, the people were talking and chattering, and the smells and sounds coming out of the kitchen were enticing as well. But in a comforting way, this amount of noise created a barrier around them – nobody could hear them in this brouhaha.

As their drinks arrived, they talked some more about their daily lives. Exchanging small anecdotes and updates on how everything went. Keeping the talk light, breezy and fun was very refreshing after this heavy encounter in the hot springs.

After a while, Gordie opened up about what was weighing on his mind for tomorrow:

“Say, Milo, I’ll have to visit my mum tomorrow. Up north, in McMorris mansion.” He took a sip of his strawberry lemonade. “… It looks like there will be something my mum wants to talk about, and it probably won’t be pretty.”

“Hey…” breathed Milo, holding on to his glass of pear lemonade. He looked at Gordie and came a little closer, so that no one could hear them, “Call me if it’s getting too much.”

Gordie closed his eyes and shook his head. “That won’t be possible, the reception is terrible up there, I will be cut off from civilisation for a few hours, maybe even half a day. The only thing that works is the land line and the family computer in my mum’s office, and I’m not using those, never again.”

Shyly, Milo’s hand slid slowly over the table towards Gordie’s. He took it, and they held hands, secretly behind the napkin dispenser on the table. “Still, call me if anything is up. The reception should come back once you are in the Corviknight cab.” said Milo quietly, his eyes wide and supportive.

It made Gordie smile again. How beautiful these button eyes, and how loving he was. “I will do so, for certain.”

_How much he wanted to give Milo a little kiss on his soft lips._

_But it was too much to risk._

_And from Milo’s big worried eyes looking into his, he could see that he was thinking the same._

_And yet, it wasn’t possible in public yet. The incident with Kabu had already shown them how dangerous things could get, and how un-ready they were to open up to anyone about this fresh blossoming relationship._

_They wanted to explore everything in private and for themselves, for no one else to see._

_For now._

“Two steaks medium rare with fries for table 6?” the waiter suddenly appeared next to them.

They both twitched and pulled their hands away, then Gordie turned to the waiter with a big smile, and proclaimed: “That’s us, correct!”

And so, they both decided to enjoy their good time at the restaurant and dig into the tasty food. It was a beautiful day, after all.

~ ~ ~

The sun began to set, and it was time to say goodbye for today. The Corviknight cab Gordie had called was ready to take off.

Here they stood again, in the middle of the main plaza in front of Hotel Ionia, a few people surrounding them with great interest to see two celebrities.

Milo’s face looked so gentle in the orange sunset, and his kind smile warmed Gordie’s heart to its very core. The tiny freckles around his nose seemed even cuter now, knowing that there were more on his neck and shoulders he could kiss one day.

“The cab driver is from around here, so you should have an easier time getting home.” said Gordie, and patted Milo’s shoulder in a friendly manner.

“Thank you so much, Gordie! This day was amazing, thank you for inviting me to the bath house and for dinner!” And Milo grinned widely, from ear to ear.

This day had been so good. Their deep talks, the steamy encounter in the hot springs, the exciting snow bath, the tasty food, and just… being around each other. It was soothing yet invigorating.

_So why did it hurt so much to say goodbye again…?_

_Gordie felt even sadder than before to say goodbye to Milo. Was it even a good thing to meet up, when all their happy hours would only end in a deep sadness?_

_…_

_Yes. Yes, it was worth it._

_The pain was bearable. For he would see Milo again._

_And be together with him again. Hopefully very soon._

_They could still write each other, voice call, or even try video calls for the first time._

_That was the price of security and privacy: The gravitas of a secret long-distance relationship._

_As Gordie looked into Milo’s eyes, he could see that he was feeling the same._

_A sad outlook in these round pupils, but a hopeful and loving glint that told him:_

_“Everything will be alright.”_

“See you, Milo.” smiled Gordie, and opened his arms for a big hug, “Yes, see you soon too, Gordie.” answered Milo, and came in for that massive bear hug.

Even if they couldn’t kiss out here in the open, this was a lovely way of saying goodbye.

Their hands patted gently each other’s backs, their fingertips running over their jackets, and their cheeks met for a moment, warm against one another.

After this long and deep hug, they parted, looked at each other again and smiled.

Then Gordie opened the cab door for Milo and lead him in, in his best gentleman form.

Milo snickered, smitten by this gesture, and sat inside the cab.

Just before Gordie could close the door, Milo whispered quickly: “ _Please call me tomorrow if anything is up.”_

“ _I will. No need to worry about me._ ” breathed Gordie back, so quietly the snowflakes nearly carried his words away.

The big Corviknight gave a might screech, and began to flap its large wings, and with that, the cab began to rise into the air.

The big wing flaps made the snowflakes twirl around and dance in the air, and Milo waved Gordie goodbye out the window. Gordie, holding on to his Wooloo scarf, waved back.

Even if saying goodbye hurt, everything was going well.

_They were proper boyfriends now._

_Together. For the first time with a man._

_And what a man that was: The kindest and most beautiful he could ever imagine, one who supported and understood him._

It made Gordie’s heart beat so much faster and brightened up his mind he hadn’t even thought possible.

He continued to look upwards until the cab disappeared in the thick clouds above.

Gordie shouldered his bag again and put his hands into the warm pockets of his trench coat.

With a bounce in his step, Gordie began to walk back to Circhester Gym, to his flat.

He would sleep relaxed tonight and feel ready to tackle the next day.

It would all go well, he thought, and hummed happily on his way home.

His feet crunched on the thin layer of snow with every new step, in the orange, warm evening sun.

Nothing could stop him now, with this new love in his life.

He was happy.

**_Little did Gordie know, that the following day would be one of the worst of his life._ **

****

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****

**_TO BE CONTINUED_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for your patience and lovely comments, reading them fills my heart with joy every time. I hope to release the following chapters a lot faster!
> 
> As usual, you can visit me on Twitter under @LewdPointyNoses [(https://twitter.com/LewdPointyNoses)](https://twitter.com/LewdPointyNoses) for updates, send me questions on [curiouscat.qa/LewdPointyNoses](https://curiouscat.qa/LewdPointyNoses) or write me on Discord, Lepon#2891!


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